Meghan Markle, who often makes her birthday about others, smiles and looks on

Royal family

3 Times Meghan Markle’s Birthday Wasn’t About Her

Meghan Markle's birthdays of the past have been about others. From mentor women to asking for people to find what makes them happy, she's known to direct attention elsewhere.

by Mandi Kerr

Published on August 4, 2022

3 min read

An expert ‘can see’ Meghan Markle putting attention ‘onto the plight of others’ on her birthday: ‘That’s right out of her textbook’

Naturally, the spotlight is on Meghan when her birthday rolls around. However, she likes to put the focus on someone, or something, else.

Speaking to the U.K.’s Express ahead of Meghan’s birthday, Eric Schiffer, an expert on brand and reputation management, called it a common move for people in “positions of power.”

It’s “a tactic that goes back centuries for those in positions of power to bequeath their spotlight to raise up others,” he said.

Schiffer continued, saying Meghan may opt to spend her birthday that way. “She wouldn’t be the first to want to shed attention from her birthday onto the plight of others, and that’s right out of her textbook today. That’s in her playbook,” he said. “So yes, I can see Meghan executing in that way.”

Meghan asked readers to find their ‘happiness’ as a birthday gift to her in 2014

Prior to shutting down The Tig in April 2017, Meghan documented a few of her birthdays on the blog. In particular, she wrote a birthday message to readers titled, “Birthday Suit,” when she turned 33 in 2014.

“I am 33 years old today. And I am happy. And I say that so plainly because, well … it takes time,” she wrote at the time. She continued, saying, “To be happy. To figure out how to be kind to yourself. To not just choose that happiness, but to feel it.”

After reflecting on her “brutal” 20s and “even worse” teen years, she concluded the message with what she wanted for her birthday.

“For my birthday, here’s what I would like as a gift: I want you to be kind to yourself. I want you to challenge yourself,” she wrote. “I want you to stop gossiping, to try a food that scares you, to buy a coffee for someone just because, to tell someone you love them … and then to tell yourself right back.”

“I want you to find your happiness,” she added. “I did. And it’s never felt so good. I am enough.”

Meghan Markle went to a wedding the day she turned 37

Once again, the focus wasn’t on Meghan’s birthday in 2018. That year the big event of the day wasn’t a party for Meghan but rather a wedding. The former Suits star attended the nuptials of Prince Harry’s childhood friend, Charlie Van Straubenzee.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were photographed entering and exiting the church where the ceremony took place in Frensham, Surrey, England.

A 40×40 initiative marked Meghan Markle’s birthday in 2021

For her birthday in 2021, Meghan celebrated entering a new decade of her life with a call to action. She discussed her 40×40 initiative in a light-hearted video with Melissa McCarthy and an accompanying statement.

“With my 40th lap around the sun in mind, it made me wonder: what would happen if we all committed 40 minutes to helping someone else or to mentoring someone in need?” Meghan said in the statement. “And then what would happen if we asked our friends to do the same?”

She continued, sharing she asked 40 people to “help kickoff a global effort by contributing 40 minutes of mentorship to support women re-entering the workforce.”