Oprah Winfrey was born on January 29, 1954, in Mississippi. She has had a very accomplished career as a television personality, actress and entrepreneur, rising up to become one of the most influential women in the United States.
I grew up hearing about Oprah and her success. Every day when I came home from school, at 4 pm she was on TV. She was idolized by Josh Nickels on the popular children’s sitcom Drake and Josh. Many women see Oprah as a source of inspiration. She was even awarded the Medal of Freedom by former President Barack Obama. There are many lessons that we can learn from Oprah to empower ourselves to become a powerhouse like her.
1. Maybe what you wanted is not for you and that is okay.
Oprah graduated from Tennessee State University in 1976 to work for her local CBS station as a reporter and co-anchor. She found that reporting is not her style due to the objectiveness needed to report on the news. She made the change to co-host a morning talk show in 1977.
She was dissatisfied in her work and decided to change her pursuit to something that would suit her more. Many of us may have a hard time admitting when we are unhappy in a workplace situation and stick to pursuits we thought we wanted. Oprah has taught us that we can change our minds and pursue something more aligned to ourselves than living in dissatisfaction.
2. Leaps of faith AKA BIG MOVES:
Winfrey excelled in her new casual and personal platform. She took a leap of faith to change what she was pursuing to something more aligned to her. The risk paid off. She moved to Chicago in 1984 to host AM Chicago, a show that had faltering ratings. Her personality really shined through her talk show and she quickly gave the show a shot up in ratings. After a year, the show was renamed after her.
A leap of faith in Oprah’s case was that she would have to change what her purpose was in media. She started out as a reporter and grew to dislike the job. She took a risk by changing her mind. It is okay to take a leap into something unknown if it better suits us. As women, we should get out of the fear mindset when it comes to our careers. Her risk managed to be a stepping stone to her success. We can learn to start living within our own guidelines. Not the guidelines of our career or what we have been told to do. Oprah moved to a new city to start a new job that became her own platform. Many times, scary risks may have a wonderful payoff.
3. We can do it all if we want to.
Oprah has impressed us with her many talents. She has been cast in many influential movies and create multiple companies within the television industry. Many women may feel as though we are constrained to one thing. For example, if I study accounting, the only thing I am ever going to do with my life is be an accountant. This statement could not be farther from the truth. Oprah has enlightened a path for many women to pursue multiple things and thrive. She started out as an objective reporter which led to her own empire by taking a risk in her career. Many of us tend to have interests that vary from our career path and we neglect those small passions. The example that Oprah sets for us as women is our jobs do not describe our talents. She has entered many different arenas such as publishing and acting to further highlight the potential that lies within all of us. That being said, dare to dream bigger. Dare to put in the work to see your wildest dreams come true.
I know Oprah did, and every single one of us has the potential to do so.