Shonda: I was a skeptic when I started. I started mediating when [my daughter] was about three. I was a very devoted meditator. I took a class where the homework was to meditate for a half an hour every day. I'm a recovering perfectionistic and people-pleaser, so was like, okay, absolutely. I'm going to do my homework. I did. After just a few weeks, what I started to notice was that by slowing down just a notch, I was actually more productive and more efficient. I was a hard sell because I like to get things done, and I still do. Writing these books, we tend to write what we need to read and remember for ourselves. It's still that reminder for me too. I have to remind myself to hop off this hamster wheel and pause and take a few deep breaths or take a mindful break because if we don't, then the pace of our day just feels so frantic and urgent.