After watching the final episode of the Oprah Winfrey show, I was so inspired by all of the words of wisdom that were given by Oprah. I found that these words could be applied to all of us as we move forward in our careers. Oprah is a prime example of what can be accomplished by someone who builds a career that she is passionate about and continues to build it to greater heights over time. Here are my three favorite Oprah quotes and the lessons that can be gained from them.
1st Quote:
“Nobody but you is responsible for your life. You are responsible for your life. What is your life? What is all life? What is every flower, every rock, every tree? Energy. And you’re responsible for the energy you create for yourself, and you’re responsible for the energy that you bring to others”
1st Lesson:
We generate the most energy doing the very things that we love and love to have challenge us. These things are our passions. When these passions are included in the way that we make a living for ourselves it becomes an infinite source from which we gain energy for other areas of our life. If you find your job spiritually and mentally draining, you are responsible for creating a change that generates the opposite.
2nd Quote:
“Start embracing the life that is calling you. Find your calling—know what sparks the light in you so you in your own way…can illuminate the world.”
2nd Lesson:
For Oprah this calling was to be a teacher. Her classroom was the Oprah Show. Today she has expanded her classroom to the Oprah Winfrey Network(OWN). I find that our true calling seems to always lie within our personal accomplishments that we are proud of, had fun doing, and did well in it. What are some of your accomplishments that fit this criterion? What do you find that all of these accomplishments have in common? This commonality will lead you to your true calling.
3rd Quote:
“You can have it all. You just can’t have it all at once.”
3rd Lesson:
Sometimes we can have these big goals and not know where to start because is seems to be overwhelming. Oprah had big dreams but she didn’t start off big. She started in radio at the age of 19 doing the news part-time for a local station. She later then worked in various roles on TV for several years on a couple different network stations. It wasn’t until she was 29 that she got her big break to host WLS-TV’s low-rated half-hour morning talk show, AM Chicago. The first episode aired on January 2, 1984. Within months after Oprah took over, the show went from last place in the ratings to overtaking Donahue as the highest rated talk show in Chicago.
Break down your career goals into small achievable steps. You may not be able to achieve your main career goals all at once. You can however determine and play smaller roles in your career that will prepare to you to play the bigger roles that you dream of.
