Quotes and Soundbites from Oprah

One way to make a point in a media interview is to quote or paraphrase a quote from an authority figure.  A favorite quote many of business clients have deployed is President Harry Truman’s “The buck stops here.” Another unfortunately relevant Truman line gets some exposure these days: “It’s a recession when your neighbor loses his job; its a depression when you lose yours.” A favorite for paraphrase is John Kennedy’s line from his inaugural address: “Ask not what your country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country.”  I have heard that one altered to accommodate everything from a NASA moon mission: “With this mission we are asking not what we can do for the moon but what the moon can do for us,” to the release of a debut CD by a new singer-songwriter: “I don’t want to know what the audience can do for me, I want to know what I can do for the audience.”

Several weeks ago in this space I listed some great quotes from uber investor, Warren Buffett, the Sage of Omaha.   A businessman quoting Buffet to help make his own point instantly wraps his message in Buffet’s credibility (and his uncanny knack for cogent expression).

Today, I’d like to cite another highly successful business figure who has a huge list of great quotes that will resonate in interviews:  Oprah Winfrey (who recently made headlines with the announcement of the end of her long running talk show). Communication, after all,  is Oprah’s business so it is only natural that over the years she had given us many rich quotes over the years.  Here are a few of them:

“Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody’s going to know whether you did it or not.”  Not a bad quote to cite in this era when the actions of some traders have spread tarnish far and wide in the business world.

“The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal, you can get there if you’re willing to work.”  A well-worded endorsement of the work ethic.

Sometimes a journalist sees a business interview subject through the green eyes of jealousy (especially in these days of tightened news budgets, deferred raises and the other afflictions of an advertising-starved media).  This one helps level the field: “Though I am grateful for the blessings of wealth, it hasn’t changed who I am. My feet are still on the ground. I’m just wearing better shoes.”

Harry Truman’s “The buck stops here,” was four words long, as was Douglas MacArthur’s “I shall return.”  Oprah came up with a three-word grabber: “Dwell in possibility.”

A funny quote is often an effective quote.  Here’s a fine one: “There’s no easy way out. If there were, I would have bought it. And believe me, it would be one of my favorite things!”

While Oprah was talking about taking personal time, this quote works well for any sort of business readjustment or even reassessment: “If you don’t recharge a battery, it dies.

Oprah clearly loves what she does, so this quote might be a good one if you do, too: “The best way to succeed is to discover what you love and then find a way to offer it to others.”

For the businessman explaining a daunting challenge to the media, Oprah’s got this, gem: “Challenges are gifts that force us to search for a new center of gravity. Don’t fight them. Just find a different way to stand.”

This one says it all about the nature of business today: “One of life’s greatest risks is never daring to risk.”

An element of Oprah’s prescription for success: “Do the one thing you think you cannot do. Fail at it. Try again. Do better the second time.”

One of my favorites is this one: “You can have it all. You just can’t have it all at once.”

And here’s a final one that’s especially relevant this time of year: “Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right.”