5 Quotes From the Shonda Rhimes & A-Rod Keynotes at Inbound18

(Inbound 18 had some great backdrops & photo opps, here I am with some rubbery ducks)

As a Digital Marketer, I was drooling with excitement in the weeks leading up to Inbound18, a massive sales and marketing conference with over 20,000+ attendees, where "education, inspiration, and human connection" happens. This was going to be my first Inbound experience, so naturally I wanted to get the most out of it.

In every session I attended I opened my One Note, and took excessive notes (I can't help myself). After Inbound I knew I wanted to share my experiences in a way that I would have liked to consume them. So through out the keynotes I was able to attend, I wrote down some of the most powerful words I heard.

(side note: the other keynotes were also awesome I highly recommend you check them out -- you can watch the keynote with Hubspot co-founders, Brian Halligan & Darmesh Shah here).

I really liked the set up of the keynote with Shonda Rhimes, best known as the Show Runner/Creator/Writer and Executive Producer of Grey's Anatomy. It was an interview style keynote (which I really prefer), and even though there was a room of thousands, it felt like she was talking to us 1:1. She was so raw, honest and open about everything, sharing really intimate details of her life while also discussing the difficulties she's faced, and learning experiences throughout her career.

Shonda Rhimes, Keynote Inbound 2018:

"I had to write a book as if no one was going to read it, or I never would have wrote it"

"You push through fear by doing...So I just did."

"Everyone is the main character in their own life story"

Never walk into a negotiation you aren't willing to walk away from." Shonda Rhimes, discussing her negotiation deal with Netflix.

Alex Rodriguez, also known as A-Rod, is an American former professional MLB baseball player, and is considered one of the best players of all time. Alex Rodriguez had a similar style interview-like keynote as Shonda Rhimes, and he too opened up, humbly describing the worst time in his life, diving deep into his suspespension from MLB. He talked about how that affected him and his family, and how he chose to rise above it. He is now a successful CEO, owning a multitude of businesses, and recently joined ABC's Shark Tank as a new shark.

"When I look to hire people, I look for people who have PhD's, and not the kind you are thinking about. I'm talking about people who are Poor, Hungry, and Driven." -Alex Rodriguez, Keynote Inbound 2018

Both keynotes had a common theme: never let fear dictate your choices in life. Most things in life are a lot less scarier than what they seem, and the possibilities are endless when you choose to embrace your fears.