Debbie Phelps, the mother of Olympic superstar Michael Phelps, sits down with us to answer some of life’s more important questions
What experience most shaped your moral life?
It’s very hard to get it down to just one. Bringing my three children into the world was just very phenomenal. That was very uplifting to me and very emotional for me.
What’s the best quality you’ve learned from your children?
Well, that could be a multitude of things: mental toughness, focus, determination, responsibility. I feel that everything that was instilled in me as an individual by my mom and my dad I’ve instilled in my own children. It’s just a pleasure to be able to see it go full circle and for me to be able to witness them as young adults.
If there were a fire at your house, and all your family, pets and essentials were OK, what would you save?
Photos. Family photos because they tell stories, they bring a realm of history to the next generation, my grandchildren and things of that nature.
Are white lies OK? And if so, when?
We’re not going to lie. Period.
I know when I work with my kids, whether it be my personal kids or my kids in my schoolhouse, you can usually tell when someone’s not telling the truth because they can’t look you in the eye. So that’s the No. 1 tip-off to me.
Something I share with my kids and my kids here in the schoolhouse as a principal is, “You know, I respect you and I really think a lot of you, and if you’re sitting here not telling me the truth, it takes a lot to gain someone’s respect back. So I really want you to think about what you said to me, and if there’s something you want to change, I want you to change it now.”
What do you want your tombstone to say?
That she just lived every day to the fullest, and that she enjoyed what she did and what she loved.
Is there a book that you find particularly inspiring?
I could say “Beneath the Surface,” my son’s book. [Laughs.] I could say that. But, you know, I think one book that I really enjoy is [Stephen] Covey’s “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.” You could go with “The World is Flat.” You could go with [Ron] Shapiro’s “Dare to Prepare.” I’m just a very strong advocate of a model of teaching leadership and teaching people how to be effective.
You just surround yourself with good people who want to work hard and get the job done — those are just important things to me as an individual. I also have a firm belief that you have to enjoy what you’re doing. That’s how I live my life: By being an effective individual, by teaching and building leadership within my school building as an educator, and to help the next generation.
What children’s books do you like?
“Oh, the Places You’ll Go,” by Dr. Seuss. That’s a great book. It just gets students and individuals to think beyond where they are now. It’s a book that I give to a lot of individuals when they graduate from high school. It’s a fun book, it’s a whimsical book, and it’s a book that has a message as to where your life can lead you.
