Your life is a journey of learning to love yourself first and then extending that love to others

Oprah Gail Winfrey, Talk Show Host, Author, Actress, Philanthropist, born 1954, USA How can I blog about great, inspiring people without including this great lady? Oprah Winfrey has motivated so many people, both to do good for others and to overcome their own hurdles, and continues to do so. Though her endeavours are many, she is doubtless best known for her talk show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, which is the highest rated television program of its kind to date, with ratings in the millions and televised in over 140 countries worldwide and with viewers, though mainly female, spanning all generations. Hard Times Our Oprah is not just the radiant, successful, wealthy public figure we know and love today. Oprah came from humble beginnings, a poor family, a single, unmarried mother, was the result of a brief fling, was moved back and forth between her mother, her grandmother and her father throughout her childhood. As if uncertainty and moving around wasn't tough enough for a kid, she was bullied by her peers about the clothes she wore, because they were so poor, and was molested and became pregnant at the age of fourteen, tragically the boy did not survive. This lady is no stranger to pain and hard times. That's just one reason why Oprah knows about learning to love yourself first and overcoming adversity. Those who have travelled the same path know what she is talking about, it is often said, 'You can't love others until you can love yourself'. But Oprah takes this sentiment a step higher, saying that learning to love yourself is the very journey of life and stressing the importance of then extending that love that you successfully cultivate for yourself towards all others that cross your path. If everyone in the world focused more on overcoming their pain they would indeed be more loving towards themselves, more complete and not carrying chips around on their shoulders. As a result of that, if we all loved each other and wanted the best for each other and helped bring out the best in each other, the world would be such a beautiful place, full of support and positivity. That is the noble principle that Oprah bases her show on, helping us all rise above our pains and troubles and become greater, more whole and give back to the world, forgive what is past and help those following behind, thus raising us all ever higher. One of the Most Influential Women in the World With everything she had to endure and overcome throughout her growing years, Oprah came out on top at school, as an honours student. At the age of nineteen she was a co-anchor in the evening news, and was soon recognised as a talent and introduced to the daytime talk show arena, where she quickly improved the rankings of the talk show she took over and subsequently launched her own production company. Oprah, though known for being plain-speaking, is never critical, always good-humoured, gentle and empathetic. Today Oprah's show is sometimes seen more as a therapy session than just talk or interviews, she deliberately focuses particularly on the spiritual aspects of life, such as self-improvement, self-help and healing. For some decades now she has clearly made it her mission to make every topic discussable and bring it all out into the open, to provide life-answers to the general public. About ten years ago Oprah formed her own television channel, The Oprah Winfrey Network. Today Oprah is ranked as one of the most influential women in the world. Among her many accolades she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Obama, and honorary doctorate degrees from both Duke- and Harvard University. Self-Image Though Winfrey has been with her current partner, Stedman Graham, for over three decades, she had a number of failed relationships until she met the love of her life in her early thirties. She has disclosed that it was the emotional upheaval of these relationships that caused her weight gain. For a while she had a history of abusive relationships, allowing too much, needed approval from men because she didn't like herself and felt unworthy, which many of us can relate to. The Ultimate Success Story Meanwhile, and with the help of the wonderful gurus she has met and introduced us to along the way, Oprah has come to believe deeply in herself and become a light for the rest of us for the way ahead in the process. Oprah has found her path and advises us, "Know what sparks the light in you. Then use that light to illuminate the world." Now a multi-billionaire, she is the ultimate success story, she has talked to the world's greatest celebrities on her show, was present as a star guest at the royal wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, and helped Barack and Michelle Obama with their presidential campaign. She is a great philanthropist, has given approximately $400 million to educational causes, $12 million to the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture, and supports numerous other humanitarian causes. Religious Beliefs Though Oprah was raised a Christian, with Baptists of the strain that preached being 'born again', in later life Oprah said, "I have church with myself: I have church walking down the street. I believe in the God force that lives inside all of us, and once you tap into that, you can do anything." Oprah has had guests of many religious persuasions on her show and their spiritual message is always applicable and relevant to all. Crossing the boundaries of what makes us different and bringing us together by the fundamental beliefs and experiences that we share. It was no doubt for this reason that after the 9/11 tragedy the mayor of New York, then Rudy Giuliani, chose to invite Oprah Winfrey to be the one to lead the prayer service held at the Yankees Stadium. Some weeks after this Oprah also ran a television show to educate the public about the true principles of Islam, that it is a religion of peace, in order to calm the growing Islamophobia at that time. Over the decades, with her increasing popularity and notoriety, Oprah Winfrey's opinions have come to have quite some influence on the public, be that in regard to politics, spirituality, literature, public figures or consumer products. So much so that some have jokingly talked about the 'Church of O', because Oprah is such an influential public and spiritual figure and millions look to her for leadership and direction in life. Oprah has encouraged many saying, "It doesn’t matter who you are, where you came from. The ability to triumph begins with you. Always." Inspiration "Your life is a journey of learning to love yourself first and then extending that love to others." Oprah is better qualified than anyone to say this, she has come through pain and learned to forgive others effectively and to love herself unconditionally and made a life of spreading that love and helping others. You can visit the 'Church of O' (or Oprah's' website) here: www.Oprah.com, which she not only uses as a platform to speak out herself but provides others with the opportunity to speak out publicly on issues important to them.