I was one of the lucky ones to see Oprah (or rather, “My Ohps”) live late last year. My friend Mel and I travelled to Melbourne to see Oprah in the flesh and I wasn’t disappointed. I have been a fan of Oprah for many years, as in, I have grown up with Oprah. I watched her (video-taped) show on Channel 10 for years and always loved what she had to share with me. I think some of many of my biggest life lessons were from My Ohps from many years ago.

I have to admit that I shed a few tears when she came on stage…. #sorrynotsorry

I had a “oh my goodness, it’s really her” moment, ok that lasted the entire show.

But what really hit home is that she talks the talk and walks the walk. Yes, I had heard many of her stories before, but when she spoke, she really engaged with the audience and oozed authenticity… I feel in love with her all over again.

And in her words, I had a lot of “Ah-ha” moments.

So in honour of My Ohps, I wanted to take a look at some of my favourite quotes from Oprah. These are perhaps my most favourite and the ones that contain the best life lessons to live the life you really want and to nurture your soul along the way:

Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you never, ever have enough.

Be grateful for your blessings, and do not always focus on your misfortunes or inadequacies. There’s always going to be something that you don’t have or don’t have enough of in life, but dwelling on it will just leave you with a frustrated and pessimistic frame of mind. Try focusing on what you are thankful for, and the universe will present you with positive experiences.

The biggest adventure you can ever take is to live the life of your dreams.

You have one life; one life that is too short to live it someone else’s way. Identify what your dreams are, and go after them with blind faith. Regardless of how difficult or how impossible it seems, know that you will learn, learn to grow, and get there eventually. Else, you have the peace of mind from knowing that you tried at least.

Turn your wounds into wisdom.

Mistakes and failures are your gateways to learning opportunities. If you look at them as low points in your life, and take nothing away from the situation, then it will remain to be that way. Or, you can pick up some good lessons from the situation, and that is how you get wiser.

Breathe. Let go. And remind yourself that this very moment is the only one you know you have for sure.

With every moment that you plan for the future, you are letting go of this very moment to do something amazing. The best thing that you can do is live in this moment, right now, and make the best of it.

Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody’s going to know whether you did or not.

Most people act virtuously when they know that they are being watched; simply because they do not want to be judged as otherwise. If you can act with integrity even when you know that there is no one checking on you, then that’s real integrity.

Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down.

The real test of who is with you, is when trouble comes knocking on the door. How many people will stand by you when it really counts, and when you are in your lowest lows and everyone else turns their back to you.

Be a queen. Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another steppingstone to greatness.

You know what’s great about thinking like a queen? No, we don’t mean the hoity toity airs that they have, but how they approach failures. Great queens did not throw the towel in the air and back down when things didn’t go their way. They have their eyes set on the goal, and try to achieve it through any means, even if it means going through many failures along the way.

The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change their future by merely changing their attitude.

It is not about what is presented to you, it is always about what you make of it. If you rest your future in the hands of fate, there is little that you can do to change it. If things do not turn out right you will blame it on the circumstance and people around you. Instead, if you change your perception and approach toward things, you will be surprised how many things are in your control and goals within reach.

Until the next rambling, with love from me and My Ohps, Belinda. 😉