Kendall Jenner opens up about being “extremely overworked” when she was younger

14 September 2022, 12:50

Kendall Jenner and Scott Disick discuss their fall out in The Kardashians episode 6

By Katie Louise Smith

"I needed to start saying no when I can, and prioritising me and prioritising my happiness and my wellbeing."

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If you kept up with the Kardashians over the years, you will have seen the start of Kendall Jenner's modelling career, and would have watched along as she slowly booked more and more jobs with various brands and designers.

Kendall was 14 when she started modelling and landed her first big break when she signed with Estée Lauder, walked for Marc Jacobs and landed a Calvin Klein campaign around the age of 18 and 19.

In a new interview with Jay Shetty on the On Purpose podcast, Kendall has now opened up about how much she worked during those years and how it affected her mental well-being and happiness.

Kendall Jenner opens up about the toll modelling took on her mental wellbeing. Picture: Theo Wargo/WireImage, Victor VIRGILE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images

Speaking about the early days of her career, Kendall told host Jay Shetty: "I look back, and the things that I accomplished, even my job, at one point when I was younger, I decided I wanted to be a model...I was 14 years old when I made that decision. I didn't stop until I was 24, then I was like, 'Okay I think I need to take it back a notch.'"

"There was a core five years that I was extremely overworked, not my happiest, not because I wasn't doing what I loved, but just because I was overwhelmed," she continued. "I felt like I was saying yes to everything because I felt really, really grateful to be in the position that I was in. It just took a lot out of me to the point where, I just wasn't happy anymore so I had to set those boundaries for myself when I was about 23."

Kendall added: "I needed to start saying no when I can, and prioritising me and prioritising my happiness and my wellbeing."

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Back in 2021, Kendall clapped back at accusations that nepotism helped her become the highest paid model in the world.

In a KUWTK reunion hosted by Andy Cohen, Kendall said: "Everyone around me, whether it's friends or family knows how hard I worked and how hard I still work. I did everything that I was supposed to do and had to do to get to the position that I'm at now as a model. I went to every single casting and ran all over, not only New York City, but all over Europe, trying to get a job and make my way."

She continued: "Of course, I had a platform, and I never took that for granted, but that almost made my job a little bit harder because people didn't want to hire me because I was on a reality show. I took my last name off of my modelling cards so that I was taken completely seriously. I literally went to the middle of nowhere castings."

Kendall ended by saying: "I definitely worked my way to where I am now."