Julianna Margulies quotes:

I would have gone to law school, or gotten a psychology degree. I wasn't interested in sleeping on a futon forever. And what happened is I walked into auditions, and I had nothing to lose, because I had a backup plan.

A good wife is someone who thinks she has done everything right: raising the kids, being there for the husband, being home, trying to do it all.

My love life is nobody's business... if I give it to 40 million people to read, what do I have left when I go home? I'm protective of my personal life that way.

I'm a believer in 'Ignorance is bliss.'

I don't see scary movies. I've never seen 'The Exorcist' or 'Jaws'.

The reason I met my husband was because I remembered a friend's birthday. The moral of the story is: Remember people's birthdays.

It's one thing in this business to actually work. 5 percent of the Screen Actors' Guild works. It's another thing to do work that's satisfying and that people are loving.

I love being my husband's wife.

If you walk down the street and smile at someone, that will get passed on to the next person. That has the power to change someone's day.

It's a little bit silly to pit us all against each other as if we were running a race. Just think about the fact that Richard Burton never won an Oscar.

I know this is going to sound corny, but I love my life. I love my baby, so I love getting to wake up with him. And I have the most amazing job, with writing that any actor would love and costars who I can't wait to see on Monday mornings. And I love coming home to my husband.

Small gestures can have a big impact.

I drink too much coffee.

I feel responsible that everyone has a really wonderful experience and to do the best work possible, and to always know my lines and to always be on time and to bring a level to the show in terms of quality that other people will follow.

I love making money, but you can't live your life waiting to get rich in a job that no longer feeds you artistically.

I was never much of a kid person. I mean, I thought they were cute to look at, but I didn't want them in my house.

I've always had a tomboy quality to me that I embrace and don't run away from. At the same time I'm a real girlie-girl.

Do what you love doing.

Isn't there a danger with Tweeting, like drunk dialing? Isn't there a drunk Tweeting danger?

I think that power comes in numbers, and we're in an industry where the actors need to have a bigger voice.

I got pregnant at 40 by surprise. It's funny, because when we found out we were pregnant, I said, 'Okay, let's experience that.' You just have to just go with it because it's rare.

I've done so many independent movies I'm sure no one will ever see, but I've loved the work.

I love being one half of a romantic couple.

I don't understand executives that pit women against each other, the fact that they brought in 'Body of Proof,' Dana Delaney is a friend of mine, and the two of us were just rolling our eyes, it's like, of course, you finally have two great female leads and you're going to put us on against each other.

I'd rather go back to waitressing than play a character that I hate.

I am a big believer in women's lib, but I love when a man holds a door for me.

I think the whole world should try not talking for a day.

I feel a tremendous responsibility to my crew, to my cast, to every guest star that comes on.

I think the whole under-eye-bag thing is hereditary, and I just got lucky.

I can tend to over-think things.

I'm the kind of person who always has to be on time and I'm incredibly professional.

I'm one of those strange people: I really love going to the gym.

The best thing a person can be is of-some-use.

TV is a much more female-friendly environment.

What a wonderful time for women on television.

The hardest thing about being an actor, and especially when you're a woman trying to also have a family and a relationship, is to maintain some sort of normalcy. With television, you might not be home a lot, but you have a routine.

It might be scary because you're taking a risk, but at the end of the day you can say you tried.

I'm one of those pathetic actors who will say yes to every play reading just because I do miss the stage so much. What I really miss about the theater is that in the end, it's yours to give. In television and film, it's yours to do and someone else's to take and someone else's to give. As much as I love television - the biggest luxury of all is to know that you have a job to go to - I do miss that connection and having that power over my own performance on stage.

Roles written for women are so much more complex on television. The film world is becoming quite flimsy for women.

I have learned to go fully in the face of my dreams. I would recommend you do the same. Now is the time in your life to be selfish. To explore. To take chances. Remember being selfish is not the same as being self-indulgent. You have the gift of time. Use it to do what you love. Believe anything is possible and then work like hell to make it happen.

I'm always aware that there's a trick to television to prevent an actor from becoming too lazy. Once you become too familiar with a character, it can stifle the adrenalin from flowing through in the performance.

That's what I love about acting, you get to find little pieces of yourself in every character you play.

The power of saying no is so much more than the power of saying yes.

To be included in the group with women like Glenn Close and Kyra Sedgwick is a little bit astonishing to me. To even be mentioned in the same sentence as Glenn Close is just ridiculous.

I am such a scaredy-cat.

The Emmys are honestly very unpredictable. I mean, have you looked at my Emmy record? I was nominated 6 times for ER and won once.

The room is full of such talent. It's a beautiful thing about the SAG Awards. It's the most rewarding room to be in as an actor.

Believe anything is possible and then work like hell to make it happen.

You never stop learning your craft. That's the key to success within yourself as an actor.

I'm too old-school to tweet.

As you get older, all the things your parents said to you when you were younger ring true, but when you're younger, you reject them.

I don't have a lot of stomach for people who don't show up to a set knowing their lines because you're keeping 150 people waiting.

I'm always shocked when actors have diva-esque behavior.

I think you're much more approachable when you're on a small screen.

The red carpet is really the only thing that makes me nervous.

You do your best work when you feel safe.

If you are on a TV series and you have a hard time disassociating from that character when you get home, your love life is going to suffer, your children are going to suffer, your friends will suffer.

You hear about actors who were doing five years on a series as lovers and actually hated each other. I don't know if I could pull it off.

What I love about what I've been given - and luck has a lot to do with it - is that if you follow your heart you'll wind up doing exactly what you want to do. I was fortunate enough to have enough of a foundation with people behind me to do what was in my heart. And it's all worked out.