"If I want to do something powerful or special, then I contact people I think are smart, educated, inspiring and I'll say, What are you doing? How can I help?"
About this Quote
The subtext is a rebuttal to the celebrity narrative that influence flows one way. Zendaya is describing a method for staying relevant without turning into a megaphone with a face attached. By naming "smart, educated, inspiring" people, she signals an awareness of asymmetry: there are thinkers and builders whose ideas drive culture, and there are famous people who can amplify them. Her solution is to treat fame as infrastructure, not identity.
Context matters because Zendaya is a child star who successfully dodged the usual traps: overexposure, cynicism, the self-serious "visionary" pose. This quote reads like a survival tactic that matured into an ethic. In a moment when "activism" can mean posting a square, she offers a more adult model: call the experts, ask what they're already doing, then put your platform to work.
Quote Details
| Topic | Team Building |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Zendaya. (2026, January 30). If I want to do something powerful or special, then I contact people I think are smart, educated, inspiring and I'll say, What are you doing? How can I help? FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/if-i-want-to-do-something-powerful-or-special-184685/
Chicago Style
Zendaya. "If I want to do something powerful or special, then I contact people I think are smart, educated, inspiring and I'll say, What are you doing? How can I help?" FixQuotes. January 30, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/if-i-want-to-do-something-powerful-or-special-184685/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"If I want to do something powerful or special, then I contact people I think are smart, educated, inspiring and I'll say, What are you doing? How can I help?" FixQuotes, 30 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/if-i-want-to-do-something-powerful-or-special-184685/. Accessed 13 Feb. 2026.








