Oprah sits down with entrepreneur and media mogul Arianna Huffington, founder of "The Huffington Post," in an all-new episode of "Super Soul Sunday" airing today, May 11 at 11 a.m. ET/PT on OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network.
In the episode, Oprah and Arianna discuss the surprising spiritual wake-up call that shifted Arianna's Perception of success. They will also talk about why it's critical to redefine what it means to be successful in today's world in order to thrive, as well as Arianna's new book, "Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating A Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder."
EXCERPT: The Moment That Changed Arianna Huffington's Life
ARIANNA: I actually collapsed from exhaustion on April 6, 2007, two years after I had founded the Huffington Post. I hit my head on my desk, broke my cheek bone, got four stitches on my right eye. I was very lucky I didn't lose my eye.
OPRAH: Didn't you sort of -- you went unconscious and then woke up and you were in your own pool of blood?
ARIANNA: My own pool of blood, yes.
OPRAH: Yeah.
ARIANNA: And then in a way what is worse is I had to go from doctor to doctor, from MRI to echocardiogram to find out what was wrong with me, you know. Did I have a brain tumor? They didn't know what was wrong.
OPRAH: Mm-hmm.
ARIANNA: And they discovered there was nothing medically wrong with me, but just about everything wrong with the way I was leading my life and what I was prioritizing. And waiting -- you know, doctors' waiting rooms are great places to ask life's big questions.
OPRAH: Whoa, you had some time there.
ARIANNA: It was Super Soul Sunday questions.
OPRAH: Yeah. Yes. The big questions, yes.
ARIANNA: So I was asking myself. Is this success? You know. By conventional definitions of success, I was successful.
OPRAH: Right.
ARIANNA: By any sane definition of success, if you are lying in your own pool of blood on your office floor, you're not successful.
OPRAH: Because you were so exhausted.
ARIANNA: Because you're so exhausted that you collapsed.
EXCERPT: How to Know When It's Time to Shut Off the Smartphone
ARIANNA: The other thing that people do, which I stopped doing after my fall, was to sleep with a smartphone next to their bed.
OPRAH: I know. You told me that you not only don't sleep with it next to your bed. You, Arianna Huffington, have a time where you shut off all the devices.
ARIANNA: Yes.
OPRAH: And you remove it from your bedroom.
ARIANNA: Pick a time when you shut off all your devices and gently escort them out of your bedroom. My bedroom is a device-free sanctuary. I only read real books in bed and underline them, which I love.
OPRAH: Mmm-hmm. Me, too.
ARIANNA: And then if I wake up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom, whatever, I'm not going to be tempted to look at my data.
OPRAH: You talk about the gifts that your mother gave you. What are the gifts you most want to give your daughters as we sit here on Mother's Day?
ARIANNA: So I was going to give them what my mother gave me and -- which was a combination of unconditional loving --
OPRAH: Mm-hmm.
ARIANNA: -- and their knowing that they can go for their dreams and that they shouldn't worry if they fail. That failure is part of the journey to success. My mother used to say, failure is not the opposite of success. It's a stepping stone to success.
OPRAH: Oh, that's so good to remember.
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About "Super Soul Sunday"
"Super Soul Sunday" is the multi-award winning daytime series that delivers a timely thought-provoking, eye-opening and inspiring block of programming designed to help viewers awaken to their best selves and discover a deeper connection to the world around them. Recognized by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences with a Daytime Emmy® award, the Alliance of Women in Media Foundation with a Gracie award and the Religion Communicators Council with a Wilbur award, "Super Soul Sunday" features all-new conversations between Oprah Winfrey and top thinkers, authors, visionaries and spiritual leaders. Exploring themes and issues including happiness, personal fulfillment, spirituality and conscious living, guests who have appeared include Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel, Dr. Maya Angelou, Gary Zukav, Marianne Williamson, Ram Dass, Eckhart Tolle, indie.arie, Coach Phil Jackson, don Miguel Ruiz, and Thich Nhat Hanh. Home to Oprah's Book Club 2.0, the series has helped surge book sales of bestselling author Cheryl Strayed, debut novelist Ayana Mathis and bestselling author Sue Monk Kidd. A truly unique television experience, this groundbreaking series has attracted one of the most loyal, active and engaged social communities in television. Every episode has ranked in the top ten most social shows in broadcast television and cable, frequently spiking to number one (source: Bluefin Data). Produced by Harpo Studios, "Super SoulSunday" presents an array of perspectives on what it means to be alive in today's world.
Photo Credit: Harpo Studios, Inc. / George Burns
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