Heidi Klum Quotes

I always treated modeling as a business and I've always been very organized. From the very start, I would keep clippings of my magazine spreads and ask my agency to find out where my photo shoots were being published. I also think I had an advantage in that I was more centered and wasn't into partying and living the high life. I had fun, but I was reasonable about it!

For me, life is about enjoying yourself because you only live once. We should try to make the most of things and follow our dreams.

Modelling is a job. For girls who want to be successful it's not something they should approach lightly. You should be professional, show up on time, prepare, and earn your money. Girls should also be aware of what they're expected to do at a photo shoot in terms of nudity, since there is often that kind of pressure — especially when you're just starting out and trying to make your mark. I also tell them they have to get a thicker skin. You have to handle criticism. All that stuff. A lot of people are looking at you and judging you. That's the nature of the job.

A size zero? I've never heard of that. That didn't exist when I was growing up. When did that start? What does it mean? It means a person is not there, no? It makes no sense.

I dont think it makes a difference if you have children or you don't have children. I think it's all in the head about how you feel and, I don't know, I always like to be active and work out and eat right and just be active so I never see it as, oh when you're a mom you can't be sexy or you cant be in lingerie anymore looking good.

I know from people I work with, that people say "I want to have Heidi’s career," and my friends are like, "but she also works very hard." It's the truth! It's not as if I sit back and watch things fly onto my plate. I went for a lot of the things. (Success) doesn't happen by waiting for things to happen because there are other people who are hungry. The early bird catches a worm.

My philosophy is that, in life, you have to want something. If you just say "la-la-la" and go through life without a goal, nothing will happen.

[In America] people are a little bit more scared to show their bodies. I grew up different. Nudity was a common thing. We went camping on nude beaches in Italy. When my parents were still sleeping, I'd just go outside and run to the beach without anything on.

If you love what you do, you can balance and you can juggle (work and family). You have to set your priorities straight. You can't just work, work, work. Because then all of a sudden, you don't have a family...then why did you work so much when you're all by yourself in the end? So for me, I always wanted to have a family, for me that was the most important thing, and I found a man that wanted to have that with me.

I always think, Look at how people were before they were pregnant. If you were a toned, healthy, energetic person, most likely you will be like that again. A lot of people come to me, and they’re like, "Will I look like you after I have the baby?" And I say, "Well, how were you before?" You can’t kid yourself.

I'm a very driven person. I'm always going after my goals. You just get up in the morning and kick yourself in the butt. I'd like to show people that they can have that same drive to go where they want to go. It's up to you and not to anybody else.

People in the business always say, "You look fabulous." You get that all the time and it kind of goes in one ear and out the other because most of the time they just say that to make you feel good. It's nice when you hear it from an ordinary person and then I appreciate it.

Fashion shows have never been my thing. I don't look thin enough for the runway. The other girls were always much taller and skinnier. But I've never starved myself or done crazy things just to be thin like a rail.

I jumped into the water with 45 sharks without a cage in the Bahamas for a Discovery Channel show. That was a really good experience. I'm not saying that everyone should swim with sharks, but sometimes you have to jump over your own shadow in order to learn something that you will never forget for the rest of your life. Then you know you can conquer your fears.

In Germany—and this started with a newspaper headline — they call us “the Patchwork Family.” I was, like, Hmm, is this an insult or is this positive? I talked to Seal about it, and we’re, like, it’s actually kind of great — we’re all different shades and we came together and we all love each other. They may call it black and white, but I’m not white, I’m a shade of brown and so is our daughter, Leni. She’s the lightest, then it’s me, then it’s our son, and then it’s Seal. So I think, Hey, it’s actually kind of nice to have a 'patchwork family.'