Oprah Winfrey’s 4 Lessons on how to Escape Financial Desperation

Oprah Winfrey’s 4 Lessons on how to Escape Financial Desperation

Do you worry about money often? Do you sometimes fear what would happen to you and your family if you suddenly lose your job? Or, are you always anxious about how you’re going to pay your bills the coming month?

Most people blame their humble backgrounds and their salaries for their financial desperation. But look at Oprah Winfrey.

We all know her story. She grew up under heart-breaking circumstances. She had to go through great hardships: parents’ separation, poverty, abuse, death of siblings with not a silver lining in sight. You wonder how a person from such a terrible background can even be alive, let alone make it in life!

So how did she not only have a successful career as a talk show host but also build a $2 billion dollar business empire?

Here are 5 things you can learn from her life so that you’re never desperate for money.

1. She pushed for career success

Oprah started her career as a news anchor. She was the youngest and first black female anchor. Initially, she worked in a few low-rated news stations. But she did a great job there. Soon big media firms noticed her and signed a deal with her to host a 30-minute talk show. This was a landmark moment because back then all the talk show hosts were white males. She was the first black woman to play this role.

As the host, she wasn’t afraid to go with her unique empathetic conversational tone in her interviews. This won the hearts of the audience. People loved her style. Viewership increased and her show was expanded to a full hour. It was then renamed ‘The Oprah Winfrey Show’!

Imagine going from starvation in childhood to a steady million-dollar salary! This is what doing your job well can do for you. When you deliver high-quality work on a steady basis, you’ll surely get noticed. That’s when the big breaks happen.

Look at what she said about money. “The reason I’ve been able to be so financially successful is my focus has never, ever for one minute been money.” That’s a great lesson for everyone. Don’t focus on earning money. Focus on doing your job well.

Another learning is to think out of the box. Oprah could’ve gone with the presentation style of other hosts. But she insisted on doing it in her own style. And this turned out to be the primary reason for the success of her talk show.

So, put on your thinking hat. What can you do better? What can you do differently? Spend time figuring out ways to improve and excel at work. Read books, pick up skills and network with others. Your finances will start to grow even without you having to think about it.

2. She didn’t go broke after she got the grand success

How often do you hear a big celebrity declaring bankruptcy? According to recent statistics, 78% of professional athletes in America go broke merely 3 years after retirement.

Mike Tyson who was once worth $400 million blew all his fortune and ended up with nothing. Even the late great Michael Jackson had severe financial trouble. Why? And how come Oprah didn’t go broke but became a billionaire instead?

The answer: Oprah had financial goals.

Once her show started to amass millions, she didn’t take the money and splurge it on wasteful living. She knew she had to prepare for the future, and she did exactly that. She sought the help of several financial experts and ensured that her future was secure.

Getting the right kind of financial counsel is ultra-important for financial success. So, talk to a few experts and educate yourself about the financial system. And a hundred per cent, work out a plan for earning money and spending your income.

3. She created multiple income streams

As her talk show picked up, she started her own production firm Harpo Inc. Then she authored many books and launched her own book club, acted in a movie and won the Academy award, started several magazine publications, signed contracts to develop radio channels and went online with her own website. All these added more and more to her nest egg.

She also started several businesses of her own and partnered with other celebrities in business ventures. Now you can see how smart she was with her money.

This’s a lesson you can take. Look for ways to create different streams of income. So if one fails you have the next one to take care of your expenses. Then you won’t get desperate ever for money.

4. She made her money grow

How do you make your money grow on its own without working for it? Invest.

Oprah did the right thing. She invested wisely. She bought stakes in various companies, got fund managers to pick the suitable investments for her, put her money in real estate. She ensured that she diversified and got herself a whole bunch of assets.

Now an important point to note. Although she diversified her investments, she didn’t stray into any random sector out there. She looked only at those fields in which she had expertise like media, food and education. The advantage of this kind of investing: you know enough about a sector to predict how much you can earn. Also, you don’t need to spend much time learning about the field.

Her talk show ran for 25 years and ended in 2011. But her income hasn’t stopped. She continues to earn more and more from all her investments and donate huge amounts to charity.

Perhaps now you can see how important investing is for your financial well-being. Spend a little time understanding your yourself and what kind of investments you’re comfortable with.

Today there’s a whole range of investment options available for salaried people. Make use of them. Explore alternative assets too. Every step you take in this direction will reward you in one way or another.

So, there you go. You may be from a not-very-comfortable background, and you may be trying to get to a better level in life. However, you needn’t persist in your fear of going broke. With these lessons from Oprah’s life, you can do really well and live far from being desperate for money.