Meghan Markle Opens Up About Her Struggles With 'Self-Doubt' While Working On Her Lifestyle Brand

Meghan Markle opened up about her entrepreneurial journey on her podcast, discussing the challenges of self-doubt and leadership while launching her lifestyle brand, As Ever.

The Duchess of Sussex also shared the importance of leaning on fellow women founders during difficult moments.

Meghan Markle has since expanded her creative ventures by releasing a new Netflix series linked to her lifestyle brand and a new podcast.

Meghan got candid about the emotional challenges of entrepreneurship during the latest episode of her podcast, "Confessions of a Female Founder," where she hosted Hannah Mendoza, co-founder of Clevr Blends.

The Duchess of Sussex reflected on how difficult it can be to lead while managing personal struggles, admitting that not every day allows her to show up as her "best and shiniest self."

"Maybe on that day, something really painful happened in your real life," she shared. "But for your team, that is not how you show up. You can't."

Meghan emphasized the importance of leaning on fellow women founders during those tough moments, describing these exchanges as "the safety of stream of consciousness with someone who understands it."

She also celebrated recent wins for her lifestyle label, As Ever, including a successful product launch and a partnership with Netflix.

The U.S.-based royal described these as "proof points," saying, "That told me that customers — people — believed in me and this vision. That's all you really want as a founder."

During the chat, Meghan also talked about the challenges of launching her lifestyle brand, As Ever, admitting that even with her platform, she wrestled with self-doubt.

"I had a moment last week … I made a phone call, I said, 'Is this gonna work? Like, is this actually gonna work?' But I had that self-doubt," she confessed.

Despite her years in the public eye, she explained that the pressure of constant scrutiny didn't shield her from uncertainty.

"You can't bring self-doubt to your team that's junior to you. They have to believe in what you're creating and the vision and how you hold the line," Meghan said.

Meghan emphasized the importance of having someone to turn to for reassurance. She noted, "But you still have to be able to have someone you can go to to be human and say, 'I don't know. Can you just tell me that this makes sense?'"

The mother of two shared that in her moment of doubt, a member of her team quickly reminded her of the momentum behind the brand.

"Thankfully, my partner said, 'Are you joking? We're so energized, this is amazing!' But I did. I got into that same headspace that any of us can because some might look at it and say, at least for me, it will have so much exposure," she shared.

The duchess added, "Whatever I put out in the world will have so much attention. I go, yeah. And there's a flip side to that coin, which we know. It's a microscope that a lot of people don't have to experience."

Beyond her lifestyle brand, Meghan is expanding her creative footprint with multiple media ventures. In March, she debuted her new Netflix series "With Love, Meghan."

The following month, April, she launched her podcast, "Confessions of a Female Founder," which has already featured powerhouse guests like Bumble's Whitney Wolfe Herd and Jamie Kern Lima of IT Cosmetics.

Meghan also recently appeared on Lima's podcast, opening up about her relationship with Prince Harry.

She fondly reminisced about their early days, when they kept things low-key by using the nicknames "H" and "M" to protect their budding romance in 2016.

Now, several years and two children later, Meghan says she believes their connection is built to last "forever."

Speaking about the Duke of Sussex, she gushed, "My husband is very, very handsome. But his heart is even more beautiful."

The couple, married since 2018, are proud parents to Prince Archie, 6, and Princess Lilibet, 3.

More recently, Meghan shared a heartfelt family moment on Instagram, posting a striking black-and-white photo featuring Harry, 40, walking hand-in-hand with Archie. At the same time, their daughter, Lilibet, sat perched on his shoulders.

The peaceful garden setting, believed to be their Montecito home, served as a serene backdrop for the intimate moment.

Though the photo was shared without a caption, its timing spoke volumes. It came just one day after Harry's appeal to reinstate his state-funded security in the U.K. was rejected.