Lauren Jauregui admits her "fear of failure and rejection" held her back from making music as it dented her confidence.
The 'Work From Home' singer - who is currently working on her solo material after splitting from her Fifth Harmony bandmates Normani Kordei, Dinah Jane, Camila Cabello and Ally Brooke - admits there was a time where she feared being rejected so much that she realised it was "holding her back".
She said: "The main lesson I learned whilst finding the confidence to write my own songs was that I was the one holding myself back. There was no one actually stopping me but me. It was my fear of failure and rejection that was stopping me because I love music and art that much."
And the 22-year-old singer realised she could be just as amazing as some of the "incredible artists" she looked up to.
She added to Ladygunn magazine: "It was about realising that and telling myself over and over again, even when I didn't believe it, 'You can do this. This is what you do. You know you can write.' You can't wait for someone else's approval or for someone else to tell you that you can do something just to be like, 'Oh s**t, I'm actually good at this.'"
Meanwhile, Lauren previously revealed she gets told she is too "intense" at times.
Speaking about being told she's too intense, she shared: "Oh, yeah. That definitely happens a lot but I don't gravitate toward those people. If you're not aware and conscious, or don't care about being aware and conscious, that's not my personal cup of tea as far as someone to hang out with. I don't even like going to the club, and that's where those people usually hang out. I can't be friends with someone or engage with someone intimately that doesn't understand or doesn't care about everyone's right to life. That's just not in my capacity anymore. I've grown too far beyond that."