The Duchess of Sussex doesn’t want "people to love her".
The former actress – who was known as Meghan Markle before her marriage to Prince Harry – wants to use her high profile to support causes that matter to her and she isn’t worried if her strong opinions make her unpopular.
Her friend Bryony Gordon wrote in the Daily Telegraph newspaper: " If I have learnt anything about Meghan in the time I have known her, it is that she is a doer, not a wallower. She lives in the solution, not the problem.
"She told me that she didn’t want people to love her – she just wanted them to be able to hear her. I have found that this is what the Duchess of Sussex stands for: using her voice to help give one to people less privileged than her."
The writer accompanied the 38-year-old duchess to visit the Luminary Bakery, a social enterprise venture in London which helps empower disadvantaged women, and Meghan admitted she wanted her official visits to be "really relaxed" because she doesn’t feel different to the people she meets.
She told the women at the bakery: "One of the things I have realised since being here [in the UK] is that people have an expectation when I’m coming somewhere, so I’m like, let’s just be really relaxed, keep everyone nice and chilled, because at the end of the day we’re all just women.
"We all have a story to tell, and I feel honoured that I am getting to hear yours."
And the former ‘Suits’ star thinks women can find a "deep connection" and a "shared understanding" with one another, regardless of their circumstances.
She said: "I find that when you strip all the layers away, as people, and especially as women, we can find deep connection with each other, and a shared understanding.
"Our lives may be different, our backgrounds, our experiences, all varied, but I find that in these moments of connection it becomes abundantly clear that our hopes, our fears, our insecurities, the things that make us tick…. well, those are very much the same. And there’s comfort in that."
Duchess of Sussex doesn’t want to ‘be loved’
