Making it through the ceiling to the other side was simply a matter of running on a path created by every other woman's footprints.
Interpretation
Success is often built upon the efforts and experiences of those who came before us.
In this quote, Shonda Rhimes emphasizes the importance of recognizing the contributions and struggles of women who have paved the way for future generations. It highlights that the progress made by women is not achieved in isolation but is a collective journey, wherein each woman's achievements create a path for others to follow. This encourages a sense of solidarity and inspiration, reminding us that we are part of a larger history of perseverance and triumph.
In practice
In a speech about women's empowerment during International Women's Day.
I have so much going on inside my head in terms of writing, there's such a large space in my life taken up by that. I can't imagine it being taken up by a husband and children and writing, and everything getting its due. I don't believe there is room for all of it. I really don't.
There's always women of many different races on my shows, and there are always women who look many different ways, but there is still a size thing in this industry. It's hard. I mean to have to say, 'I want a larger woman to be an actor on my shows.' Or, 'Find me a larger woman,' is almost insulting to me.
When the script is finished, and you're sitting around at a table read, and all the actors are reading the words that you've written, and you're hearing it out loud for the first time, that is always, every single time, no matter what, a magical process.
We all think weβre going to be great and we feel a little bit robbed when our expectations arenβt met. But sometimes our expectations sell us short. Sometimes the expected simply pales in comparison to the unexpected. You got to wonder why we cling to our expectations, because the expected is just what keeps us steady. Standing. Still. The expected's just the beginning, the unexpected is what changes our lives.
In my house, you got in trouble if you didn't speak up. My mom would be furious at us if we went to school and behaved nicely if someone treated us badly. If we got in trouble because we had yelled at them or told them that they were wrong, my mother would be like, 'Good job.'
When I'm hard at work, when I'm deep in it, there is no other feeling. For me, my work is at all times building a nation out of thin air. It is manning the troops. It is painting a canvas. It is hitting every high note. It is running a marathon. It is being Beyonce. And it is all of those things at the same time.
Choice, not chance, determines your destiny. It's up to you to decide what you are worth, how you matter, and how you make meaning in the world. No one else has your gifts--your set of talents, ideas, interests. You are an original. A masterpiece.
With realization of one's own potential and self-confidence in one's ability, one can build a better world.
I believe that having something to hope for - even if it's just a better tomorrow- is the most powerful drug on this planet.
I would have written 'Brown Girl Dreaming' if no one had ever wanted to buy it, if it went nowhere but inside a desk drawer that my own children pulled out one day to find a tool for survival, a symbol of how strong we are and how much we've come through.
Ah, Nothing is too late, till the tired heart shall cease to palpitate.
Go forth in every direction- for the happiness, the harmony, the welfare of the many. Offer your heart, the seeds of understanding, like a lamp overturned and re-lit, illuminating the darkness.
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