Oprah Winfrey is a well-known personality that is revered by many. She is considered one of the most influential women in the United States and she does leverage her influence positively, empowering men and women to continue pursuing their passion. This article tackles some of the most important life lessons that you can learn from Oprah Winfrey, the first black millionaire.

Passion for Learning

One of the primary things that you can learn from Oprah Winfrey if you also want to be just as successful as she is, is to cultivate a passion for learning. This means that you need to start fostering the habit of reading such as she did in her early years because it paved the way for her to develop her passion for talking. As everyone knows, she is one of the best talk show hosts that graced television and she attributes her knowledge about various topics to the books that she has read.
Perhaps this is the best time for you to pick a book too and begin reading through various topics that may interest you. For starters, you can read books about the success story of Oprah Winfrey to gain more inspiration. Apart from being able to widen your vocabulary and comprehension, you will also be more empowered to empathize with other people through reading. The best part is that you get to enjoy health benefits when you read too, particularly when you read to relieve your stress or fight symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Perseverance

At an early age, Oprah Winfrey experienced struggling in life, even wearing dresses from potato sacks just to go to school because her grandmother was poor. Living with her father, she experienced being abused several times by members of her own family, but this did not stop her from dreaming and believing that eventually, she will be able to have a better life and reach her goals. While she dropped out of college to take on a job as a news anchorwoman, she continued honing her skills and persevering to achieve the life that she has dreamed for herself.
Fast forward to 2011, she was already able to launch her own television network, the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN). By this time, she was already an influential woman, wherein people even coined the term “The Oprah Effect”, such that any individual, business, or even an idea endorsed by her became a big hit or widely accepted. She achieved all of these successes because of her perseverance to continuously work on her goals.

Self-Reliance

Another key thing that you can learn from Oprah Winfrey is self-reliance. If she was able to stand on her own two feet after being abused and suffering a miscarriage, then for sure you can get back on your two feet too regardless of the challenges that you have to face. Apart from the things that she endured in her early years, her talk shows were not an instant hit when it aired too. But she was able to turn this around and made afternoon talk shows something to look forward to.
This only means that you need to believe in yourself and the things that you can do. In doing so, no challenges will be able to stop you. Have the confidence to look for new adventures and new lessons to learn, or even new reasons to believe in yourself because after all, that is what life is all about.

Taking Risks

Oprah Winfrey is also not afraid to take risks and this is another life lesson that you can learn from her. She is bold, which is why she is capable of overcoming her fears. According to her, the thing that you are most afraid of really has no power over you, but it is your fear about that thing that is holding you back and crippling you. Thus, you need to do everything in your power to overcome your fear because it is only then will you be free.
This means that you should not be afraid to take risks because it is in doing so that you can drive change. Taking risks can eventually lead you to success. Even if you do fail, you will have the learning from your failures to guide you through a new path to take. Remember that risky situations also pave the way for significant opportunities for success.

Resilience and Optimism

In accepting her Cecil B. DeMille Award during the 2018 Golden Globe Awards, Oprah Winfrey pointed out in her speech that you are in control of your destiny and that your life is shaped by the choices that you make. Thus, how you end up in the future is the result of how you choose to move forward in the face of adversity. If you want to be successful, you need to be resilient and tough, not easily discouraged by failures.
Treat failures as lessons that life is teaching you. Thereby, learn from it and commit to making the necessary changes for you not to experience the same downfall again. Be optimistic that the result of your next move will already lead you to success and be strong to rise above the challenges that may come your way.

Giving Back to Society

Finally, give back to society as Oprah Winfrey continuously does. It is in giving back that you can reap more as you touch the lives of others. Keep in mind that what may be quite insignificant for you may mean a lot to another individual, which is why giving back matters.
It is because of Oprah Winfrey’s reading habit that she developed an extensive passion for talking and continuous learning. With her unending perseverance and self-reliance, she was able to attain the goals that she has set for herself. She was also courageous enough to take risks and have a positive attitude regardless of the results of her decisions. Finally, learn to give back to society such as Oprah Winfrey continuously does because this is one of the keys that can lead to your success.

WRITTEN BY

Clara Rose