Shonda Rhimes said 'yes' to everything for one year and showed impact it had on life

Shonda Rhimes already led a pretty epic life as an executive TV producer before she decided to spend the year saying 'yes' to everything.

The 55-year-old, who is the primary creator of the classic medical drama Grey's Anatomy, took a leaf out of Jim Carrey's book by agreeing to all of her friend's suggestions for 365 days straight.

Although Yes Man might have landed Carrey in some compromising situations, it worked out for him on the whole, as he ended up reconnecting with his friends and dating everyone's (or at least mine) childhood crush Zoeey Deschanel.

And Rhimes enjoyed similar success when she challenged herself to do the same, having started her new way of life when one of her daughters asked her to play with her when she was about to leave.

Speaking in a Ted Talk from 2016, she revealed that she 'made a vow' that if one of her three children asked her to play she would always say yes, no matter what she was doing or where she was going.

While she claims that this later 'saved her career', she soon started to work a bit too much, and she started to question why she was working so hard, suggesting that 'the hum stopped'.

Rhimes is a hugely successful producer (Chris Haston/WBTV via Getty Images)

She was heading out to work and was late again, when she remembered her vow to play with her kids whenever they asked, and she also realised in that moment how much they had changed while she had been working so hard.

Rhimes kept the 'yes to play' rule as a way of reducing her workaholic guilt even though she prefers working to being at home.

In her case, it was the simple act of saying 'yes' to her daughters that allowed her to be more present and focused in the moment, and as a result, her desire and motivation to work returned when it had previously stopped.

She realised that work with no play doesn't work, and her daughters' request to play became a synonym for 'reclaiming joy' in her life.

The more she plays, the better she feels, parents, and works; the 'real hum' is life’s hum.

She followed in the footsteps of the original Yes Man (Warner Bros)

While Rhimes didn't divulge if she said yes to more outlandish things like skydiving or swimming with sharks, her change did help her find the perfect balance between work and play.

So, the next time you're hard at work and you get asked to do something a bit more fun, maybe just do it, it might just change your whole mindset. Although, I doubt my bosses here would take too kindly to the concept of me going to play on a bouncy castle instead of writing these articles.

But while you don't need to take it literally and say yes absolutely every time, it's important to give yourself time and let yourself have fun even when work feels relentless.