Why Meghan Markle Plans to 'Rethink My Parenting Style' So Archie and Lili Are 'Self-Sufficient'

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Motherhood is always on Meghan Markle's mind.

The Duchess of Sussex, 41, spoke about how she wants to raise her children to be go-getters in the latest episode of her Archetypes podcast. Meghan welcomed Mellody Hobson, co-CEO of Ariel Investments and chairwoman of Starbucks, and Victoria Jackson, makeup mogul and medical advocate, for a conversation called "To 'B' or Not to 'B'?" There, the women unpacked how the word "bitch" holds women back, especially in the working world.

Hobson, 53, shared her story starting with childhood, growing up as youngest of six children raised by a single mother in Chicago.

"My mom was very unique. She gave me the hard truths of life with so much love and support. But she never wanted me to go through life not being prepared for all that would come. So she taught me what to expect as a Black woman and a Black person, and I really do appreciate that aspect of her — I call it 'brutal pragmatism,' but with so much love," the executive said.

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Though the family struggled to make ends meet, Hobson says her mother raised her kids to go after what they wanted — like a straighter smile.

"I found my own orthodontist. I went to the appointment by myself," Hobson said of investigating braces in sixth grade. "I asked all of my friends who their orthodontist was and called and made an appointment because I had a fang, you know, one of those teeth that sticks up top. It was so awful. I knew I couldn't go through life like that."

Remembering how the "special" orthodontist treated her like an adult, the doctor told her that braces would be $2,500.

"And I said, 'Well, we don't have that kind of money. And he gave me a payment plan,' " Hobson recalled of the valuable money lesson. "He gave me a little booklet. And then I went home and told my mom and explained the whole thing to her. And I went back and got braces."

The businesswoman said her mom wasn't surprised that she was so inventive because "if I wanted to do things, I had to figure it out every time."

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Impressed with her intensity, Meghan replied with a laugh, "I have to rethink my parenting style! Because if that's what yields you, then I've really got to up my game with our kids being self-sufficient." A mom of two, Meghan shares son Archie, 3, and daughter Lilibet, 1, with her husband Prince Harry.

"What's so great about the orthodontist story, specifically, is that if you look at that training that you're getting by default at 12 or 11 years old, to know that you're asking for what you need and figuring out a way to get it. And it's working!" Meghan continued. "But as you get older, when you're not this 11 or 12 year old, and you're growing into a woman – that that same understanding of knowing what you want, asking for what you need — that can sometimes be thrown back in your face, like, as though you're being 'difficult' or something. Pushy."

Elsewhere in the episode, the duchess dug into the definition of "the B-word," noting that the negative phrase is too often used to insult and dismiss women.

"I was talking to a good girlfriend of mine this past weekend and when I saw her, she said something I had never heard before — 'Well, isn't that a convenient villain' — an assertive woman in a position of power, being called the b-word? How very convenient," Meghan said.

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"But that's what happens when we label someone, a woman, especially, one of these words. it becomes a way to take their power away. Keep them in their place. A lot of times it's tied to the very women who have power and agency, as my friend was suggesting who aren't comfortable being silent, like, businesswomen and entrepreneurs."

Tuesday's conversation was the ninth episode of Archetypes, which debuted on Spotify in August. Programming was paused following the death of Queen Elizabeth II on Sept. 8, and the weekly release of new episodes resumed a month later.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex first announced a "multi-year partnership" between Spotify and their production company Archewell Audio in 2020. According to a previously shared press release, Archetypes intends to "investigate the labels that try to hold women back."

Previous guests have included Serena Williams, Mariah Carey, Mindy Kaling, Margaret Cho, Lisa Ling, Constance Wu, Paris Hilton and Issa Rae for conversations on ambition, race, mental health and more.

New episodes of Archetypes drop Tuesdays on Spotify.