# I'm on the Mel Robbins Podcast

### And I learned a ton from how she hosted me.

[Priya Parker](https://substack.com/@priyaparker)

Jun 22, 2026

A few months ago, I was on Amtrak on my way home from a speaking engagement in Boston when I got an email inviting me to appear on The Mel Robbins Podcast.  
I’ve been struck by how she uses her massive platform of over 37 million listeners to bring experts, often professors and researchers, into conversation, translating their ideas into people’s deeply practical daily lives.

Her guests range from people like Gabor Maté to anxiety specialists to psychologists and professors whose work focuses on questions like how to make friends, how to build connection, and how to live better lives. I was thrilled she was considering how we gather _and_ how we fight to be part of that conversation.

I wasn’t expecting how much thought and care would go into the experience itself.

If hosting begins before anyone enters the room, I was held from the moment of invitation.

Weeks before the recording, I had a call with one of the producers. He gave me a sense of what the experience would be like, asked if I had any questions, and began helping me think through what I wanted to share.

The morning of the interview, I flew up to Boston.

It was a very windy day.

I was glad I brought my jacket and did my best to keep my hair from being totally nuts for the interview. (This podcast is as visual as it is aural, as all podcasts seem to be going in the age of video…)

When I walked into their offices, their entire team stood and clapped to welcome me. (Honor and awe.)

When I entered the actual recording studio, there were yoga blocks with words written on them: Purpose, Specificity, Uniqueness, and Disputable.

They had taken my definition of purpose — the framework I teach in _The Art of Gathering_— and turned it into something visible, memorable, and as understandable as possible for their listeners. The best educators don’t simply share ideas; they figure out how to make those ideas stick and how to help people bring them into their own lives.

Before we started recording, Mel said to me, “No offense, but I’m not thinking about you, and I’m not thinking about me.” Throughout the entire conversation, she told me, she is thinking only about her listener. And, not listener _s_, just one listener. One person. So if she cuts me off, or has me speed up, or switches topics, she is in service of the listener. (A formal public defender, Robbins was using her generous authority to both guide me and remind me of her core purpose in this entire conversation.)

The view from behind my mic.

We recorded for over two hours. Half the conversation was about _The Art of Gathering_, and half, interestingly, was about my new book, not yet out, _The Art of Fighting_.

In our interview, she pushed me to go granular: you’re around the table with your parents and your children after so much work to bring people from across the country to gather. Food is hot. You’re sitting there. Tell me what to do.

I learned a great deal simply by being in the room with her.

The episode dropped this morning. I’d love to hear what lands with you.

**You can now listen [here](https://open.spotify.com/episode/7zrbIvbxvW0gUveJtnorMU) on Spotify or [here](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/try-it-for-1-week-small-ways-to-make-your-life-fun/id1646101002?i=1000773324368) on Apple or [here](https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/72cc76f8-c4d0-4d99-b3bf-b3bc3cab506b/episodes/b9bac1ed-34ff-4b03-8ba0-0172d044575c/the-mel-robbins-podcast-try-it-for-1-week-small-ways-to-make-your-life-fun-exciting-again) on Amazon.**

As always,

Priya

P.S. Join me today, Monday, June 22, at 12 pm ET for a Substack Live with [Shanta Thake](https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/03/arts/music/lincoln-center-shanta-thake.html), Chief Artistic Officer at Lincoln Center. For four years, Lincoln Center invited hundreds of couples to get married together, all at once, in Alice Tully Hall. We'll break down how they designed the ritual, built the experience, and created one of New York City's most unexpected gatherings. [Join us here](https://open.substack.com/live-stream/221513?r=546l&utm_medium=ios).