Shonda Rhimes is raising ‘stubborn,’ confident daughters

Shonda Rhimes is proud to be raising three headstrong daughters.

Even though they are different from one another, her daughters are all stubborn in the best way.

The Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal creator, and executive producer of How to Get Away with Murder and The Catch, said no one will ever take advantage of them.

Her daughters, Beckett, 2½, Emerson, 4½, and Harper, 14 will always go their own way because they have decided they are going to.

The 46-year-old single parent says that as a child, she too shared similar traits to her daughters. Rhimes explains that having a stubborn child is so much better than having a nice, pliable child who can be easily manipulated.

“I don’t want to have a nice girl,” she believes. “I’d rather have a stubborn girl.”

“The only difference between a woman and an awesome woman is how a woman defines herself, frankly. And what you choose to do with your life,” she says.

“Because I think if you believe yourself to be an awesome woman you are an awesome woman and, in general, you behave as an awesome woman.

“If you don’t believe yourself to be one, then you don’t,” she adds. “It’s really about what you believe about yourself.”

Rhimes admits that she doesn’t understand the hype around the fact that she writes such strong female characters — because women are not naturally weak people.

”I keep getting asked how I write about such smart, strong women, and my response is, ‘What’s the alternative? Weak, stupid women?’ ”

She also touches on the importance of being your own person, even if you are looking to any of her characters for inspiration on how to do that.

“They’re just normal people, not role models. If you are aspiring to be like any of them, something’s a little bit wrong.”