5 Rules of Success According to Oprah Winfrey

5 Rules of Success According to Oprah Winfrey

Today, Winfrey is known as one of the most successful television personalities in the country. Her estimated net worth is almost $3 billion! To go from severe poverty as a child to that kind of financial stability as an adult took more than luck; for Winfrey, it took a lot of perseverance and all the wisdom she had acquired. How did she manage to do it? Read on and find out: here are the five rules of success, according to Oprah Winfrey.

1. Rather than overwhelming yourself with the big picture, ask yourself what the next right move is.
It’s easy to feel intimidated by everything on your plate, so instead of facing such an enormous proposition, take things one step at a time. Make the best next move you can, then make the next move, and then the next one, each time going as carefully and as thoughtfully as you can. Winfrey believes that success isn’t one giant leap — it’s a series of baby steps. And, if you make one misstep, understand that that one mistake won’t define your life and your career. You have more steps to take, and you’ll arrive at success eventually.

2. When you see an opportunity, take it.
Oprah does not chalk up any of her success to luck. Instead, she insists there’s been grace and blessings, but there’s also been an opportunity. The key to being successful is to recognize when the opportunity is in front of you and seize it. So what about luck? “Luck is preparation meeting the moment of opportunity,” Winfrey has said. If you’re not prepared, if you’re not looking for that chance, then luck won’t do you any good.

3. Forgive yourself for your past mistakes.
You’re not the person you were five, ten, twenty, or more years ago. A lot of wisdom comes with age, so don’t beat yourself up for youthful transgressions. You didn’t know any better — but you know better now! Look at those past mistakes as teachable opportunities, learn as much as you can from them, and then move forward.

4. Never stop improving yourself.
This means continually working on your personality, your skillset, and your network to be in the best possible position to make a difference. Others may see your efforts to improve yourself as self-centeredness, or being “full of yourself,” but Winfrey believes you should ignore them. You always need to be improving if you want to get ahead. If people are saying that about you, take it as a compliment. You’re doing a lot, and others are noticing.

5. Go as hard as you can.
Beyond that, recognize that you have control only over your performance. You can’t control the competition at all. When Winfrey was starting with her talk show, she knew that there were lots of other shows competing for guests, topics, and airtime, but she also knew that she had no control over any of that. All she could do was make the best show she knew how to make. Similarly, all you can do is the best you know-how, all the time. It’s like a race: you just run hard until you read the finish line, and all you can do is make yourself run more quickly, not make your competition run more slowly. That’s what brings you success: building yourself up, not looking behind you to see where your game is.