Arianna Huffington often has people asking her for advice, especially when it comes to how to thrive both personally and professionally. (She's even teaching a six-week eCourse on the subject.) But what are the words of wisdom that Arianna herself has turned to on her journey to success? In the above video, she tells #OWNSHOW about the unforgettable pieces of advice that have helped her pave her own path, as well as shares some of her own philosophies about how we can lead less stressful and more fulfilling lives.
How to Get Through Difficult Times
Life's difficulties, large and small, can cause many people to get "stuck," give up or lose hope -- but not Arianna. She credits her mother, Elli, for teaching her the notion that even in life's most difficult moments, there is something wonderful waiting around the corner. One particular quote from the poet Rumi was among Elli's favorites, and it has stuck with Arianna for years:
"Live life as though everything is rigged in your favor."
When Arianna finds herself facing challenges or heartbreak, she uses this advice to help find the strength to continue moving forward. "I kept remembering that there's a hidden blessing somewhere," she says. "Even when things are darkest, I know there will be light."
How to View Failure
On her own path to success, Arianna has experienced her share of failures, which she has spoken about candidly in the past. For example, when she was shopping around her second book, it was rejected 36 times. Even one failure has the possibility of derailing one's dream, never mind 36, but Arianna has an interesting way of looking at "failure" so that it keeps her focused.
"See failure as not the opposite of success, but as a stepping stone to success," she says, again quoting her mother. "That way, when we fail, when we are rejected, we don't see this as the end."
How to Integrate Work and Life
Work-life balance is a hot topic these days, but Arianna believes that in order to achieve this, we have to rethink what it actually means. For starters, she says, "work-life integration" is a much better description.
"'Balance' makes us think that it's going to be 50/50, [like] we'll be able to spend equal time at work or at home," she explains. "The truth is life isn't like that... The important thing is your life and your work [are] integrated, by which I mean, are you consistently exhausted and burned out, or are you taking enough time to sleep, to meditate or renew yourself in whatever way works for you?"
How to Recognize When You're Burnt Out
Arianna says the key is to recognize when you've spread yourself too thin. To do this, she emphasizes the importance of listening to your body's cues when you are too tired.
"We've all gotten so used to being perpetually tired that we consider it the new normal," she says. "We are much more aware of how much battery remains in our smartphones than how much battery we have left.
"Once we become aware of the signs," she continues, "we can learn to course-correct much faster, so that stress and exhaustion don't become cumulative."
More advice: Join Arianna's eCourse to learn how to truly thrive. "Every week, we focus on two steps -- it's a total of 12 steps -- that can take us from where we are now to thriving. We make them very simple," she says. "And we have great guest teachers. Week 1 is Kobe Bryant."
Registration for Arianna's eCourse ends Sunday, May 10, so sign up now.
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