Cara Delevingne and life affirming messages seem to come hand-in-hand. The model and actress often shares them with her 27.9 million Instagram followers – “Family: we may not have it all together, but together we have it all” is one such example. Now, the 23-year-old star has penned an article for TIME Magazine’s new site Motto, sharing her journey to self-acceptance.

Titled ‘Getting others’ approval isn’t the most important thing’, Delevingne begins the article by discussing her modelling career, which she started at the age of 16. “I worked hard to be accepted by the fashion community in ways beyond my physical appearance. In no time, though, I found myself surrendering to the industry’s approval process. I felt like I needed validation from everyone,” she says. “As a result, I lost sight of myself and what it meant to be happy, what it meant to be successful. I think it all stemmed from a deep-down feeling of wanting people to like me and love me.”

She goes on to say that while she was proud of her accomplishments – which include being one of the industry’s highest earning models and being crowned Model of the Year at the British Fashion Awards twice – she “wasn’t genuinely happy.” Several years later, at the age of 20, she decided to reevaluate her life. “It’s taken time, but now I realise that work isn’t everything and success comes in many forms. I’ve opened my mind, and now I embrace new things with a childlike curiosity. I’m spending more time doing the stuff I love. And I’ve been able to do better work because of it.”

In the last year, Delevingne has made it clear that it’s in acting that her true passion lies. Last year she starred in Pan and Paper Towns, and this year she’s starring in six more titles, including Zoolander 2 (out now) and Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie (out in July).

“I still have so much to learn, but I have realised that beating myself up, feeling guilty and regretting past mistakes will only hold me back,” she concludes humbly. “After all, no matter how many people like you and your work, it doesn’t matter if you don’t like yourself.”

Read the full article here.