• Paris Hilton says she has always been driven by the desire to be known as "Paris" without need for the famed family hotel name.
• Early celebrity playing what she says was a reality TV character informed by the need to bury childhood trauma contributed to the overriding goal for the 11:11 Media founder and CEO.
• "I promised myself I would work so hard and be so successful no one would be able to control me," she told CNBC's Julia Boorstin at the recent CNBC Changemakers Summit in Los Angeles.

The Hilton brand may have gained its iconic status in America long before Paris was born or ever became a household name, but the great-granddaughter of the hotel chain founder has been driven most of her life by the desire to succeed on her own.

"I always wanted to build something on my own," Hilton, founder and CEO of 11:11 Media, told CNBC's Julia Boorstin at the second annual CNBC Changemakers Summit in Los Angeles on April 8. "I didn't want to be known as the Hilton Hotel granddaughter. I wanted to be known as Paris."

For two decades, Hilton says, she has traveled on planes for 250 days a year, chasing that goal across her businesses, and she told CNBC that among the most satisfying moments of her success came from something her grandfather would say to her in conversations. "I used to be known as Barron Hilton and now I'm known as Paris Hilton's grandpa."

Hilton does give a lot of credit to her family, which she says instilled a "really hard work ethic" in her, and an approach to business built on hospitality, "something that really runs in my blood," she said.

But there was significant pain experienced along the way, in particular, the "emotional growth" boarding schools that Hilton was sent to as a teenager — an experience she has chronicled at length in her memoir and a documentary film, and which has led to her work as an advocate for legislation across the U.S. to protect troubled teens from being placed under similar institutional control. A growing number of state laws have passed to date, and President Joe Biden signed a federal bill championed by Hilton last December.

"My parents had no idea how horrible these places were," she said.

When she emerged and found early fame in the reality TV series "The Simple Life," Hilton says she was playing a character more than being herself, nudged by producers to fit into a role that also helped her to mask her trauma from the world.

But she also made a promise to herself. "I would work so hard and be so successful, no one would be able to control me or tell me what to do. Success would make me happy and I'd never have to depend on anyone but myself," she said.

"Turning pain into purpose has been the most healing experience of my life," she added.

Her brand has continued to evolve, from the launch of dozens of fragrances over decades to the growing 11:11 Media portfolio, including TV deals with Netflix and NBCUniversal, podcasts and other digital presence, and a new skincare line on the way.

Those successes led to Hilton being named to this year's CNBC Changemakers list, which spotlights women whose accomplishments have left an indelible mark on the business world. 

Hilton says the character she once played on TV hasn't been left behind for good, and can serve a useful role in her life. "Because I played it for so long, it will always be a part of me, but that's the silly part of me. Sometimes with products or brand deals, I play into it ... it's fun. ... it's kind of boring to always be serious," she said.

But Hilton has much bigger, serious ambitions for 11:11 Media, as big as building "the next Disney," she said.

She remains a restless individual, at least partially due to ADHD, she says: "I feel like it really makes the creative inside of me, how I take risks, how I just can do so many things at once."

That drive can also have a downside. "It's hard to sleep at night because I'm constantly just thinking of new ideas. ... I lose my phone a lot, my house keys too," she said.

But it also continues to lead Hilton to consider new ways to build her singular, first-name brand. "One day I might be announcing that I'm launching my own hotel brand around the world," she told CNBC.

Watch the video above from Paris Hilton's appearance at the recent Changemakers Summit in Los Angeles to hear Paris in her own words and voice.

Disclosure: NBCUniversal is the parent company of CNBC.