Start with Yourself: A New Vision for Work & Life with Emma Grede and Oprah

The Oprah Podcast

Harpo

Society & Culture

4.2 • 1.5K Ratings

🗓️ 21 April 2026

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Emma Grede has become one of the most influential voices in modern business. She is best known as a founding partner of SKIMS, co-founder and CEO of the clothing brand Good American, her podcast Aspire with Emma Grede and as the first Black female investor on ABC’s hit show Shark Tank. She is helping redefine what success looks like for a new generation of women. In this conversation with Oprah, Emma dives into her first book Start With Yourself: A New Vision for Work and Life sharing the mindset behind her rise from a young girl in East London to a global business leader. Drawing on the lessons in her book, Emma opens up about radical self-accountability, the power of discipline and why success starts from within. She also shares her bold perspectives on work-life balance, motherhood without guilt and why women must get comfortable putting money and ambition at the forefront. Plus, we hear from twin sisters who turned a simple idea into a hundred-million-dollar business after making a deal with Emma on Shark Tank. BUY THE BOOK! Emma Grede "Start with Yourself" https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Start-With-Yourself/Emma-Grede/9781668085486 00:00:00 - Welcome Emma Grede author of “Start with Yourself” 00:04:18 - Emma knew she needed to change 00:06:10 - Realizing what you don’t want 00:08:35 - How Emma changed her life 00:13:45 - Radical ownership and real barriers 00:15:10 - We need more women in power 00:19:00 - Career and motherhood 00:20:20 - We put too much pressure on moms 00:22:50 - Truth vs. emotions in business 00:24:22 - Mistakes Emma made 00:27:00 - Emma and Skims 00:27:50 - Building from purpose vs. ego 00:31:00 - Emma funded this on Shark Tank 00:36:00 - Importance of mentorship 00:38:20 - When to scale a small business 00:39:30 - The most important question 00:42:20 - What does self-care look like? 00:43:30 - Meditation practice 00:46:00 - Emma on life being magic 00:49:30 - Overcoming comparison 00:51:00 - Why she wrote the book 00:52:40 - Dyslexia is a superpower 00:54:30 - Is every woman meant for business? 00:56:30 - A well-lived life Cakes Body https://cakesbody.com/ Follow Oprah Winfrey on Social: https://www.instagram.com/oprahpodcast/ https://www.facebook.com/oprahwinfrey/ Listen to the full podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/0tEVrfNp92a7lbjDe6GMLI https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-oprah-podcast/id1782960381 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	And here's the thing, Oprah, this book is dismantling the rules that we've all been sold around these things.
0:05.6	I honestly believe that we need, desperately need, more women in positions of power right now.
0:13.0	And so I look at this and I say, do you know what?
0:15.3	If you are an ambitious woman, it is going to require some discomfort.
0:19.5	If you want money, it's going to require some level
0:23.4	of audacity. If you want a big, big career, you're going to need visibility and proximity.
0:28.8	If, and it's not for everybody, but if you want a family, it's going to require some timing,
0:33.0	and it's probably not what we've been told. And if you want power, then you are going to need to take it
0:39.2	because nobody is coming to give you power. And just like I said, we are desperate in this world
0:43.8	for more women in positions of power right now.
0:47.8	Hey there, everybody. Glad to be with you here on the Oprah podcast. My guest is not just an entrepreneur, not just a businesswoman. She is an
0:57.2	inspiring force, a modern day business mogul and visionary. And she's written a book called
1:03.8	Start With Yourself. It's a new vision for work and life. And it should be your guide if you are starting a business,
1:12.0	thinking about starting a business already in a business, want to make a better business for
1:15.6	yourself and want to be a better person in that business.
1:18.4	I highly recommend start with yourself, honey.
1:23.4	Please welcome Emma Greene to the podcast.
1:26.6	Hi, Emma.
1:27.4	Oh, hi, Oprah.
1:28.4	I am so happy to be here.
1:30.8	I can't even tell you how happy I am.
1:33.2	Forbes named Emma Greed, one of America's wealthiest self-made women at just 40 years old,
	...

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