We are all guilty of needing validation in our lives from others and that is nothing to be ashamed of. As humans we want to be told that we matter, because we do. However, when we find ourselves in a position where our only source of worth comes from other people, our joy is no longer in our control.

Erin Winters #behindthescreen confession is both inspiring and hard hitting to us all. Not all our scars are visible, some are buried beneath filters or in Erin's case, an involved leader with a smile.

"It took a long time for me to be honest about what was I was going through. I thought that the only way to be successful was for everyone else to be under the impression that my life was perfect.

I built up this false persona of perfection: an overly involved leader who loved every detail about her life that everyone could look up to.

When in reality, I was really unhappy with myself.

I felt like a failure.

I relied on the praise of others, who only saw my accomplishments and my big, fake smile, to give myself any worth. I was terrified that if I told anyone how unhappy I really was, the image others had of me would shatter and people would see me for what I really thought I was: not good enough.

It took me a long time to realize that if I wasn't happy with myself, it didn't matter what others thought about me.

That's when I started to open up about my struggles and my imperfections. It's still not easy to get real and say, "Hey, you know what? I'm not okay right now. I'm really struggling and could use some help." But I've realized that people actually respect the honesty you show them.

Sharing the bad stuff I used to bottle up has helped me create authentic and meaningful relationships with those around me, and that has made me so much happier than when I pretended my life was perfect."