Sofia Boutella Quotes

I felt connected with Madonna from a very young age. I think I share a lot of qualities from her personality. I really respect her.

When I started coming on the scene, just really new into NXT, and people started seeing me, I got a lot of positive feedback from my friends, my friends back home. They were like, 'Oh, you are doing such great things for young girls,' and then it clicked in my head, like, 'Wow! I didn't know that was something I could do here.'

I'm a role model for lots of young girls.

I like to think I'm a role model for women. But I also don't like to just limit it to women. I like to think I'm a role model for human beings in general.

All it takes is one teacher - just one - to save us from ourselves and make us forget all the others.

If you look at my Instagram, girls are just beating down my door for tips or a job or mentorship. I can't hire every single one of them. My story is one thing that gives them hope. It's an unconventional story with anecdotes, commonsense advice and a big dose of permission to figure things out for yourself.

Oprah was not somebody who was telling us what to do, she wasn't really teaching us like so many people we see today. With Oprah, she was learning and we were learning with her. And I think that's really was the seed that was planted for all of us to just hang in there with her.

I've grown up with kids watching me and as they're growing up, I'm growing up.

I went to Catholic school, and there was this teacher, a Brother, who saw I could go either way, good or bad. He took an interest in me and got me to do a play. I got hooked on acting, and it gave me something constructive to do. I had a lot of energy.

When you're young you don't think, 'This person is going to change your life.' But when you start recording your own songs, it comes back and reminds you.

I hope that somewhere in Small Town, U.S.A., a 15-year-old kid looks to me as a role model the way I looked at the Indigo Girls and Elton John as role models.

More and more, when I single out the person out who inspired me most, I go back to my grandfather.

He didn't maintain my illusion of myself, he gave me an illusion of myself. Before I met him, I never thought of myself as an actress. Boy, he sidetracked me in a great way!

My favorite singer is Lauryn Hill - all time, hands down. She was my biggest inspiration growing up.

My sister, she's amazing. She sort of inspired me to take this journey to Latin America.

You can't lead anyone else further than you have gone yourself.

My first and most loved real novel was 'Little Women.' I identified with the Jo character even though we were opposites. Jo was very strong-minded and brave, and I was shy and kind of a wuss, everyplace but in my own home. I wanted to be Jo. She was my alter ego. I think reading that book gave me courage.

The truth is we're all searching. We're all looking for guidance, for mentors, and I'm by no means someone to follow.

Growing up, I didn't have older sisters or many strong female role models to look up to. Being an adult now and looking back, I realize how much I wanted someone like that.

Faith Hill is a big role model.

I feel like I've been very blessed to have some great mentors through the years, starting with Don James, who was my college coach, who really inspired me to want to be a coach, which is not something that I really had in mind.

Beyonce's like my secret mother.

I've gotten lots of great advice from lots of people that I admire, but the person who influenced me more than anyone in my life was my grandmother.

I think Honey G is a brand, she's an inspiration for me at least.

Women watch and say, 'I like watching you control your own space. It's motivated me to do better, to go back to college, to even try law school. My daughter's been watching you since she's 10 - I love the fact that she's watching a strong woman who's in control.' All of those things are good, positive things.