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Mar 03, 2020liljables rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
Depending on your TV preferences and general pop culture knowledge, you may or may not know who Shonda Rhimes is. For the uninitiated, Rhimes is the showrunner (that is: creator, head writer, and executive producer) for Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice, and Scandal; her production company, Shondaland, is responsible for half a dozen other popular shows besides. It's undeniable that Rhimes is hugely successful, but in November 2013, she had something of an epiphany in the midst of a somewhat heated conversation with her sister, who muttered under her breath, "you never say yes to anything." This lead Rhimes to declare 2014 her "Year of Yes". Now, I was somewhat skeptical that I would find any pearls of wisdom that would be applicable to my life within these pages; in fact, I'm making a concerted effort to say "no" to more things in my life these days (because #burnout). But I found myself nodding along more often than I was rolling my eyes. One of my favourite chapters is about "saying yes to compliments"; that is, accepting praise with sincere thanks rather than brushing it off or saying "it was nothing". It probably wasn't nothing, friend! Let yourself be valued and appreciated - Shonda says so! My other favourite chapter (surprise, surprise) was about "saying yes to saying no" - knowing when people in your life are overstepping boundaries and having the confidence to say no to them (and YES to your boundaries). If you're still on the fence, allow me to add that I don't watch ANY of Shonda's shows, but I still thoroughly enjoyed this book. Rhimes' writing style is exactly like her speaking voice (based on interviews I've heard), and it's a real pleasure to read - it's friendly and familiar and informal. Dang, I bet this is another great audiobook, too.