"I don't believe in the adage that beauty is pain," says Gugu Mbatha-Raw. "I don't believe that beauty should be painful!"
She's speaking about style and appearance, specifically – and how the best piece of fashion advice she's ever been given is "to be comfortable" – but it's a mantra that's served her well in all areas of life, allowing her greater focus and, in turn, increased confidence. "You want to wear the clothes, you don't want them to wear you," she explains. "If my feet hurt, or something's digging in, or I'm pulling a dress down, then it affects my confidence... It's much better to be comfortable, to be relaxed, to be confident – then that will shine through."
Helena Christensen
Mbatha-Raw is filming the latest episode of our Life Lessons franchise on the set of her December/January cover shoot in London, for which she's just been photographed by the legendary supermodel, Helena Christensen. The two had never met, prior to our shoot – but, as fellow Goodwill Ambassadors for the UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, they had long admired each other from afar.
It's this very work with the UNHCR that led to the actress being crowned Philanthropist of the Year in our annual awards issue, celebrated with a starry ceremony at London's Claridge's in November.
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"It's been incredibly rewarding for me," she says, of her work as a Goodwill Ambassador. "Being able to advocate for refugees; being able to travel, as I've been able to do with the UNHCR, to the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Uganda, and meet individuals who are going through the most difficult of circumstances, displaced from their homes and trying to survive in the world – but not just survive, thrive – and be able to share those individuals' stories, has been such a privilege. It's the world we're in and I have the chance to spread awareness. It's been an incredible, eye-opening experience."
Helena Christensen
The actress and producer has also learnt the importance of setting boundaries and taking care of herself; knowing when to trust her instincts and how to manage her time.
"For me, self-care means knowing when to say 'no'," she explains. "So often we're in such a people-pleasing culture and if you don't say no to things that your instinct truly doesn't chime with, then you'll end up over-extending yourself – and therefore you're not taking care of yourself. Being able to say no is, I think, a good boundary to have, be that in work or in life. It might sound like a negative thing, because you're saying 'no' to something, but you're actually saying 'yes' to yourself and what you need."
This balanced and measured approach also extends to her concept of success, which Mbatha-Raw says "comes in many forms".
"There's not just one standard of success, or one form of success," she says, thoughtfully. "You have to define what success means to you, personally. There's success in the eyes of the outside world, but if you feel like you're spread too thin or if one side of your life publicly is going amazingly, but behind the scenes everything's falling apart, is that really success? I think if you are able to uphold elements of a whole life – and a whole life being not just work, but something that has many facets to it – not all of that is out there for public consumption. It's for you to know that you're balancing things for yourself."
Watch our full video with Gugu Mbatha-Raw above, in which she shares what she's learnt about confidence, career, friendship, love and more.
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