Between her hosting her own talk show, her books, her TV channel and every other amazing thing she has offered the world, Oprah Winfrey has been around long enough to teach us all a lot. Today, we’re going to look back at some of the wisdom Oprah has shared with us through the past few decades.
“Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough.”
Just like Oprah says in this quote, being thankful is one of the most important lessons of life. Count your blessings on the daily and it will be so much easier to see even more blessings that you didn’t notice before. Being negative and pointing at the bad parts of your life will only ever bring you unhappiness.
“Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody’s going to know whether you did it or not.”
In the digital age where every single thing seems to be posted all over social media, sometimes you need to look at your values to see if you’re doing good to look good, or out of the good of your heart. In her career, Oprah has created her own charity, has been a social activist for years, and has donated to many important causes.
“Surround yourself with only people who are going to lift you higher.”
It’s easy to get stuck in unhealthy situations. Just this past year, I had to make the difficult decision of cutting off a friend who wasn’t good for me. In this quote, Oprah encourages you to evaluate your relationships and to be with people who care for you and who make you better, not worse.
“Excellence is the best deterrent to racism or sexism.”
They said you couldn’t do it? Show them wrong. While the world is constantly dealing with so much racism and sexism, among other things, Oprah is a motivator for every Black woman who has dealt with both. She is a great role model and has done so many amazing things in her career, despite facing adversity.
“If friends disappoint you over and over, that’s in large part your own fault. Once someone has shown a tendency to be self-centered, you need to recognize that and take care of yourself; people aren’t going to change simply because you want them to.”
This speaks to any relationship in your life. People don’t change because you want them to, they have to change on their own accord. If this person lets you down over and over, Oprah says that it is on you to make the change and to let them go.
“Forgiveness is giving up the hope that the past could have been any different.”
You can’t change the past, just like you can’t change people. In order to move on, you have to realize that you can’t change what has already happened, you can only move forward. Holding a mistake over someone’s head will only make the future worse.
“Your calling isn’t something that somebody can tell you about. It’s what you feel. It is the thing that gives you juice. The thing that you are supposed to do. And nobody can tell you what that is. You know it inside yourself.”
It can be hard to follow a dream if it seems like there is another path that will bring you more money or more success. Life is short though, and Oprah says that you will be able to feel your calling, and when you do, you shouldn’t do anything beyond that thing. Live the life you love.
“One of my greatest lessons has been to fully understand that what looks like a dark patch in the quest for success is the universe pointing you in a new direction. Anything can be a miracle, a blessing, an opportunity if you choose to see it that way.”
We all know what it is like to be in a dark patch, especially lately. Even in the hardest moments of your life, you can turn it into something positive. Take quarantine for example, which gave me an opportunity to chase my dream and put more time into my writing. Any valley can be a hill.
What lessons have you learned from Oprah? Share them with us below in the comments!
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