This triggered my own personal reflections. As a working mom, I’m forever trying to prove that I can wear all the hats. That I can work all day and make the after-school play date, plus snacks. That I can plan a weekend full of family activities and look picture perfect for it. “Instagram or it didn’t happen,” is a sentiment that lives rent-free in my brain as I take on busy days bopping between work and motherhood and life while guilt tripping myself about the photos not posted, the experiences not shared. In other words, the pressure to prove my worth—my life—to others. (Yes, social media, which Meghan only recently rejoined, is a huge culprit here.)
But Meghan’s insights got me thinking: What if I could—like her—re-train my brain to quite simply drown all that noise out? Let myself be late to not just pop culture trends, but a text or an Instagram post, too, and to stop trying to prove why I embarked on something major like a career pivot or family expansion? (As a woman who just become a second-time mom in her 40s, I find myself on occasion over-explaining my children’s age gap, which I need to stop.) My new goal, inspired by Meghan: To narrate my life for myself vs. others. Cue the sigh of relief.
Because, according to the duchess, if you can achieve this perspective shift, there’s freedom on the other side and the chance to unlock something much more impactful and happy-making: Feeling content. FWIW, another insight Meghan shared on the Time100 stage is that the era she currently finds herself is the “happiest she’s ever been.” No proof necessary.