Shonda Rhimes Quotes

Powerful Shonda Rhimes for Daily Growth

About Shonda Rhimes

Shonda Rhimes, born on January 13, 1970, in Chicago, Illinois, is a trailblazing American screenwriter, producer, and television showrunner who has left an indelible mark on the entertainment industry. Rhimes's journey to success was not straightforward; she grew up in a single-parent household with her mother, Delores, who instilled in her the importance of education and hard work. Rhimes attended Dartmouth College, where she discovered her passion for storytelling and wrote for the college humor magazine, The Jack-O-Lantern. Rhimes began her career in television as a staff writer for HBO's 'The Office.' Her big break came when she joined the writing team of ABC's 'Grey's Anatomy,' where she eventually took over as showrunner and created a groundbreaking medical drama that has run for over 17 seasons. Rhimes went on to create and produce several other hit shows, including 'Private Practice,' 'Scandal,' and 'How to Get Away with Murder.' Rhimes is known for her diverse and complex characters, as well as her groundbreaking portrayals of women in leadership positions. In 2017, Rhimes signed a multi-year deal with Netflix, where she has since produced shows like 'Bridgerton' and 'Inventing Anna.' Rhimes's influence extends beyond television. She is a vocal advocate for diversity and representation in media, and her work has been recognized with numerous awards, including the Peabody Award and multiple NAACP Image Awards. In 2018, Rhimes released her first book, 'Year of Yes,' detailing her journey towards embracing new experiences and taking risks. Quotes by Shonda Rhimes have become legendary in the entertainment industry. Some of her most famous quotes include, "Everybody dies. Faced with your own mortality, life has a vividness that it didn't have before. It's us. It's now. It's fantastic." and "Dream crazy, the craziest you can dream. If you don't know why you're on this earth, reason back from what you want. Start saying yes for no other reason than you want to say yes." These quotes encapsulate Rhimes's spirit of fearlessness, ambition, and creativity.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"Dream crazy, a little messy, wholly yours."

This quote by Shonda Rhimes encourages individuals to dream ambitiously and uniquely, allowing their dreams to be slightly chaotic and personal. It suggests that dreaming should not be confined by societal norms or expectations, but rather reflect one's authentic personality. In essence, it promotes the idea of embracing creativity and self-expression in pursuit of one's aspirations.


"Never explain yourself. Because no one else ought to decide your value."

This quote emphasizes self-worth and personal integrity. It suggests that individuals should not feel compelled to justify or explain their actions, beliefs, or identity to others. Instead, they should hold onto their inherent value and not allow external validation to define them. In other words, one's worth is an internal matter and should not be determined by how well they can articulate themselves or conform to others' expectations.


"I don't want anyone to survive, I want them to thrive."

Shonda Rhimes' quote, "I don't want anyone to survive, I want them to thrive," emphasizes the importance of not just existing but flourishing and achieving one's full potential. It underscores a desire for people to live meaningful lives filled with joy, success, and fulfillment beyond merely getting by or making it through difficult times. The quote calls on individuals and society as a whole to create opportunities and environments that empower people to pursue their passions, grow, and realize their dreams.


"I'm not a runner but for some reason I ran 5K. Because if I can do it, you can too."

This quote implies that even if someone (like Shonda Rhimes herself) perceives themselves as not being capable of doing something challenging, such as running a 5K race, they can still overcome that perceived limitation with determination and effort. The message is one of encouragement: if she, who doesn't consider herself a runner, can accomplish it, then anyone else also has the potential to achieve what may seem impossible or difficult. It underscores the power of self-belief and personal perseverance in facing obstacles and achieving goals.


"The hardest lessons are often the ones we learn from ourselves."

This quote by Shonda Rhimes suggests that some of the most profound learning experiences come from self-discovery, introspection, and personal growth. It implies that challenging situations or mistakes can lead us to reflect upon our actions, beliefs, and character traits, enabling us to understand ourselves better and grow personally. In other words, facing and overcoming adversity can be instrumental in cultivating wisdom and maturity.


I believe that good television should be challenging and frustrating and maddening and thrilling. If you just want to see people who look like you and think like you and do what you would do in any given situation, you'd have to stop looking at TV and start looking in a mirror. But would that be as much fun?

- Shonda Rhimes

Mirror, Believe, TV, Thrilling

What I found fascinating for me was, I've never gotten so much approval and accolades and warmth and congratulations as when I had a guy on my arm that people thought I was going to marry. It was amazing. I mean, nobody congratulated me that hard when I had my three children.

- Shonda Rhimes

Thought, Marry, Gotten, Warmth

No one's body is up for comment. No matter how small, how curvy, how round, how flat. If you love you, then I love you.

- Shonda Rhimes

Love, I Love You, Small, Flat

There are stories to be told that are still untold and characters to be portrayed that haven't been portrayed correctly. So there's work to be done.

- Shonda Rhimes

Been, Still, Stories, Correctly

Having a strong sense of self is fundamental to you, no matter what you're doing. I don't care if you're a stay at home mom raising kids or if you're the CEO of a corporation. It's really important for your survival.

- Shonda Rhimes

Strong, Doing, Fundamental, Home Mom

I really do feel like the work and time we spend avoiding having difficult conversations is so much more wasteful and painful and time-consuming than actually having the difficult conversation.

- Shonda Rhimes

Work, Like, Having, Conversations

Frankly, the idea that we need to be beautiful, if you really think about it, it's odd. But if you can turn it inward and see yourself as beautiful, that's what changes the world.

- Shonda Rhimes

Think, Need, Idea, Inward

The entire world is skewed from the white male perspective. If you're a woman, they have to say it's a female-driven comedy. If it's a comedy with Latinos in it, it's a Latino comedy. 'Normal' is white male, and I find that to be shocking and ridiculous.

- Shonda Rhimes

Woman, Comedy, Normal, Latinos

'Scandal' has always lived in this dark place with this idea that Washington is filled with this underbelly of monsters, that if the real world understood how dark, twisted and corrupt it really was, they would never agree with our government or want to be part of it. It's been kind of fun to live in that world. It felt like a fictional world.

- Shonda Rhimes

Idea, Been, Part, Fictional

My philosophy was always try to look like Whitney Houston at all times. That did not work out so well.

- Shonda Rhimes

Work, Always, Like, None

I want to be able to sing like Whitney Houston did.

- Shonda Rhimes

Want, Like, Houston, None

I always like to say our shows should be something that, you know, before 10 o'clock, if your kid wanders into the room, they should be able to glance at the TV, watch what's happening, but not quite know what's happening. That's always my standard.

- Shonda Rhimes

Before, Standard, TV, Glance

This is going to sound crazy, but there was a period of time where on TLC they would show those surgeries - like a woman had a 90-pound tumor, or they separated these twins. And my sister and I - she lived in Ohio when I lived in California - would watch them together on the phone.

- Shonda Rhimes

Woman, Sound, Show, TLC

I think that women are raised to believe that they're supposed to want certain things, and so you feel like you're supposed to apologize when you don't want those things.

- Shonda Rhimes

Think, Like, I Think, Apologize

We have people say, 'There's not enough women writers.' I have a writers room that is almost nothing but women over at 'Grey's Anatomy.'

- Shonda Rhimes

Over, Anatomy, Almost, Women Writers

There's racist casting, and there is normal casting. Normal casting, to me, is a process that strives for representation and, in many cases, strives to simply portray the world as it actually is instead of as falsely non-inclusive. And sadly, sometimes that involves removing the whitewash that exists on history.

- Shonda Rhimes

Process, Normal, Sadly, Casting

I say it in the writers' room all the time: My black is not your black. What's terrifying is that, just the same way we've all accepted that normal is white, everybody seems to buy into the idea that there's only one way to be black or one way to be Hispanic. That's as damaging as anything else.

- Shonda Rhimes

Idea, Everybody, Terrifying, Hispanic

There's nothing wrong with being driven. And there's nothing wrong with putting yourself first to reach your goals.

- Shonda Rhimes

Reach, Nothing, Putting, Goals

I never, ever pay attention to the ratings. I stopped paying attention to the ratings somewhere around season two or three of 'Grey's.' It's something I have no control over, so I don't even pay attention.

- Shonda Rhimes

Pay Attention, Over, Stopped, Ratings

I truly feel like my job is to make the shows. That's what I'm paid to do. It's somebody else's job to market them, and it's somebody else's job to pay attention to the ratings, because if I paid attention to all that, my head would explode.

- Shonda Rhimes

Feel, Head, Shows, Ratings

The secret sauce of the business that I can offer is my creativity, and in order to keep my creativity alive and fresh, I have to pretend that no one is watching the show, that there are no audiences, there are no ratings; I'm just telling a story.

- Shonda Rhimes

Business, Alive, Telling, Ratings

My 15-year-old threw open the door the other day to my room and screamed, ''Freaks and Geeks' only has one season? Can they make another one?' And I tried to explain to her that it happened a long time ago. She didn't understand that because it felt very relevant to her.

- Shonda Rhimes

Door, Explain, Very, Freaks

What's great about Netflix is that everything is kind of instantaneous, and it goes around the world instantly. Everything is released at once. The format can be a little bit whatever you want.

- Shonda Rhimes

Kind, Want, Goes, Instantaneous

I'd split up with a boyfriend and gone to Vermont to stare at my navel, and then 9/11 happened, and I spent days being scared of what was happening in the world. So I made a list of all the things I wanted to do, and at the top was adopt a baby. Nine months and two days later, I brought my daughter home.

- Shonda Rhimes

Nine, Nine Months, Brought, Navel

I'm one of those people, since I was 5, I could tell you I was going to have kids. I could tell you I was going to have three. I could tell you they were going to be girls. But I have never wanted to get married. I never played bride. I was never interested. I don't know what it is; I never wanted to get married.

- Shonda Rhimes

Bride, Three, Tell, Get Married

A woman who doesn't want to have kids is sort of a mystery to people. That's a question they're asked the minute they get married, it's a question they're asked constantly, 'Don't you want to have kids?' And I feel like that's completely unfair.

- Shonda Rhimes

Woman, Feel, Constantly, Get Married

I work for ABC. If the thing that ABC is paying me for is storytelling - not to make sure that a costume is exactly right or all those other things - then it is up to me to find the most creative space possible so that that function of my job can happen.

- Shonda Rhimes

Space, Storytelling, Other, Costume

There is a part of me that's oblivious. People always ask me, 'What obstacles have you faced?' and I always think, 'What are you talking about?' Whether or not there were obstacles, I never saw obstacles. It's never occurred to me that I wasn't good enough for something.

- Shonda Rhimes

Obstacles, Part, About, Faced

The way I write my shows, every character is its own organic thing. No character has a life at all until I see it played by somebody.

- Shonda Rhimes

Own, I See, I Write, Organic

I don't get to watch a lot of TV, mainly because I'm busy working. And I pretty much try not to watch very much television at all, even American television, until I'm done with a season, because things start to creep into my head otherwise.

- Shonda Rhimes

American, Very, TV, Season

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