The Mel Robbins Podcast

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Order your copy of The Let Them Theory 👉 https://melrob.co/let-them-theory 👈 The #1 Best Selling Book of 2025 🔥 Discover how much power you truly have. It all begins with two simple words. Let Them. — This episode is a MUST listen. Mel calls it “the single best conversation” she has ever recorded. If you’ve ever felt behind, stuck, or doubting yourself, you need to hit play. This is the most motivational, eye-opening episode that you will ever hear, and it will give you the roadmap to become the person you’ve always wanted to be. Today, Mel is joined by Emma Grede. Emma is one of the most successful self-made businesswomen in the world, playing a huge role in 3 billion dollar brands, as the founding partner of SKIMS, cofounder & CEO of Good American, and co-founder of Safely. But this is not a conversation about business. It’s about creating an extraordinary life, even if you’re starting from nothing. Emma was raised in East London by a single mom. She’s dyslexic and did poorly in school. She dropped out of college in her first year because she couldn’t afford tuition. But that was just the start of her story. She proves that anything is possible when you refuse to quit. Today, she has built 3 billion-dollar companies, became a Shark on Shark Tank, and is the host of Aspire with Emma Grede – in addition to being a mom of 4. In this conversation, Emma will give you the mindset, the strategy, and the motivation to bet on yourself when the world doubts you. This is a masterclass in grit, vision, and relentless execution. By the time it’s over, you’ll stop waiting, stop wishing, and start moving. For more resources related to today’s episode, click here for the podcast episode page: https://www.melrobbins.com/episode/episode-321/ Follow The Mel Robbins Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themelrobbinspodcast I’m just your friend. I am not a licensed therapist, and this podcast is NOT intended as a substitute for the advice of a physician, professional coach, psychotherapist, or other qualified professional. Got it? Good. I’ll see you in the next episode. In this episode: 00:00 Meet The Guest 04:15 Emma’s Story as a 17-Year-Old College Dropout 11:53 How to Get Unstuck and Take the First Step 18:46 Why There’s No Secret to Success 27:03 Pursuing Excellence Over Perfection 32:19 The Mindset Reframe That Emma Lives By 37:31 How to Stay Motivated When Your Job Isn’t Your Dream 42:01 Nobody Is Better Than You — And You’re Not Better Than Anyone Else 49:05 The Origin Story of Good American 59:45 Inside the Billion Dollar Pitch That Changed Everything 1:04:02 What Nobody Tells You About Overnight Success 1:12:04 How to Craft a Business Pitch That Actually Works 1:15:50 Brutally Honest Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs 1:21:30 The One Skill You Must Learn to Stay Relevant 1:26:52 Your Dream Only Works If You Do — Follow Mel: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melrobbins/ TikTok: http://tiktok.com/@melrobbins Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melrobbins LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melrobbins Website: http://melrobbins.com — Sign up for Mel’s newsletter: https://melrob.co/sign-up-newsletter A note from Mel to you, twice a week, sharing simple, practical ways to build the life you want. — Subscribe to Mel’s channel here: https://www.youtube.com/melrobbins?sub_confirmation=1 — Listen to The Mel Robbins Podcast 🎧 New episodes drop every Monday & Thursday! https://melrob.co/spotify https://melrob.co/applepodcasts https://melrob.co/amazonmusic — Looking for Mel’s books on Amazon? Find them here: The Let Them Theory: https://amzn.to/3IQ21Oe The Let Them Theory Audiobook: https://amzn.to/413SObp The High 5 Habit: https://amzn.to/3fMvfPQ The 5 Second Rule: https://amzn.to/4l54fah

Mel RobbinshostEmma Gredeguest

Sep 1, 20251h 26mWatch on YouTube ↗

WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT

From East London Grit To Billion-Dollar Brands: Emma Grede’s Playbook

Mel Robbins interviews entrepreneur and Shark Tank judge Emma Grede about how she went from a poor, dyslexic kid in East London to co-founding billion-dollar brands like Good American and SKIMS. Emma emphasizes radical personal responsibility, managing your thoughts, and practicing excellence in every task as the foundations of her success. She demystifies “overnight success,” stressing that careers unfold in long chapters, powered by hard work, smart risk-taking, and relentless iteration. The conversation also covers knowing whether you’re truly suited to entrepreneurship, how to pitch and build a network, and why women must not miss the AI revolution.

IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING

5 ideas

Treat personal responsibility and thought management as non-negotiable foundations.

Emma frames her life as proof of what happens when you fully own your circumstances and carefully choose your thoughts; you cannot manifest your way out of anything—vision must be coupled with hard work.

Practice excellence in everything, especially the small and ‘crappy’ jobs.

“How you do anything is how you do everything” underpins Emma’s approach, from making sandwiches to packing clothes; showing up with pride and excellence draws people and opportunities to you and builds true leadership skills.

Stop chasing perfection; aim for your own version of excellence.

Perfectionism is externally focused—obsessing over what others think—while excellence is internal, about whether your effort meets your own standard; shifting to excellence frees you to start, iterate, and grow.

Use every job to learn what energizes you and what doesn’t.

Emma used years of low-level roles to learn the fashion ecosystem and discover her strengths (e.g., negotiating) and weaknesses (e.g., spreadsheets), recommending you follow what gives you energy as a compass for your path.

Success is slow: think in decades, not months.

She spent 10+ years building an agency before Good American and only truly loved her work in the last five; she urges people to stop rushing, accept the “rule of thirds” (great, okay, terrible days), and commit to the long game.

WORDS WORTH SAVING

5 quotes

Anything is possible if you really put your mind to it, but you are not going to manifest your way out of anything.

— Emma Grede

How you do anything is how you do everything.

— Emma Grede

If you don’t know what you should pursue, you should pursue yourself.

— Emma Grede

Not everybody should start a business… We’ve romanticized this idea of what it means to be a founder.

— Emma Grede

Everything you want is there. It’s just gotta find you working.

— Emma Grede

Personal responsibility and deliberate thought management as success foundationsExcellence vs perfectionism and how to practice excellence dailyCareer building over decades: crappy jobs, white space, and “overnight” successEntrepreneurship realities: who should and shouldn’t start a businessLaunching and scaling Good American and SKIMS (white space, execution, failure)Networking, pitching, and storytelling to open doors and attract partnersFuture-proof skills, especially adopting AI and continuous self-improvement

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