Robbins realized that in order to be persuasive, she had to distill complex legal arguments into simple, memorable sound bites. It was a skill she honed for the next 20 years, first as a criminal defense attorney and later as a popular radio host.
Her ability to communicate effectively and succinctly is evident in her podcast, books and speaking engagements. She takes complex psychological concepts and distills them into actionable steps that anyone can implement in their daily lives. It’s a skill that has endeared her to millions of listeners and readers around the world.
Despite her success, Robbins remains grounded and relatable. She credits her Midwestern upbringing for instilling in her a strong work ethic and a sense of humility. She often shares stories of her own failures and struggles as a way to connect with her audience and show them that success is possible, even in the face of adversity.
”I’m just a regular person who has faced challenges and setbacks like everyone else,” Robbins says. “But I’ve learned that with the right mindset and a little bit of courage, you can overcome anything. That’s the message I want to share with my listeners and readers.”
To win a case, she realized that “you’ve got to be able to distill it down into something super simple that somebody can remember… and that’s the heart of what I do.”
Robbins and her team have taken her podcast well beyond productivity pep talk territory, in part by bringing on experts for conversations on health and wellness, which has resulted in a reshaping of the cultural lexicon on some topics. Her episode with guest Dr. Mary Claire Haver, an OB-GYN and menopause expert, for example, became the podcast’s most-listened-to episode of all time and has spurred countless new discussions between women and their doctors about medical treatment for perimenopause symptoms. Episodes tackling anxiety are also ranked in her top five, including one with Dr. Russell Kennedy, known as the “Anxiety M.D.”
The podcast’s success has led to a landmark three-year agreement with SiriusXM, which secures 143 Studios’ revenue stream well beyond the typical 60-day ad sales cycle. The deal, alongside her books, audiobooks, courses and speaking engagements, puts the company among big players in global media. “And I’m just crazy proud of the fact that a bunch of, largely, women in their early 40s and 50s are the ones running it,” she says.
Stepping into the shoes of leader and entrepreneur is something Robbins learned from her mother, Marcia Schneeberger. “She just had this moxie,” Robbins says. “I just saw this woman [who] would decide what she wanted to do, and then she would just go do it.”
She recalls the time her mother and a friend sought a bank loan to open a gourmet kitchen store in the 1980s in Muskegon, Michigan. The bank, impressed with the business plan, agreed to give the two women a loan—but only if their husbands would cosign. Her mother, who was joint account holder with Robbins’ father on several personal accounts at the bank, “stood up and marched right over to the teller and promptly started to close all their accounts.” After that, Robbins chuckles, “they were more than happy to give her a loan very quickly.”
Living life as an open book
Online, viewers get a peek into Robbins’ own marriage and family life, say, in a video of the couple camping out in their backyard or in a podcast interview with her son Oakley about his anxiety. She embraces the social media influencer model of self-promotion, appearing on social media daily—often several times a day—with a word of advice or simply a momentary thought she wants to share. Sometimes, the recordings take place along hiking trails near her home in southern Vermont or in her office or studio, while others she films while she’s getting in the car to head to yoga class.
When asked about her willingness to share so much of her life online, she says that while she has no intention of turning her life into a reality show, “I really just love deeper conversations, and I think we’re all largely going through the same things, and we can learn from it.”
One such personal revelation came last year on the day of her son’s high school prom. He hadn’t made dinner reservations, bought a corsage or prepared for the weather (a rainstorm was headed their way). Robbins describes how she repeatedly tried to intervene to help her son while he, as teenagers do, resisted any assistance. One of her daughters happened to be home visiting and watched the scene go down with scorn, imploring, “’Mom, let them…. It’s their prom. Not yours.’”
Robbins took the plea to heart and began repeating the refrain “let them” to herself. Within a week, it became a mantra that she says allowed her to rise above the annoyances, inconveniences and outright offenses of daily life and relationships. She felt the white-knuckled grip she had held on so much of her life start to loosen.
Robbins shared the revelation on her social media channels, and the posts blew up immediately. When she started receiving pictures of fans’ tattoos featuring the phrase “let them,” she knew she was on to something big.
The Let Them Theory
In December 2024, she published The Let Them Theory, a highly anticipated release that details how the practice works in daily life and in a variety of relationship scenarios.
Important to the theory is an equal measure of personal responsibility captured in the accompanying phrase, “let me.” She explains in the book, “When you say Let Them, you make a conscious decision not to allow other people’s behavior to bother you. When you say Let Me, you take responsibility for what you do next. What I love about “Let Me“ is that it immediately shows you what you can control. And there’s so much you can control. Your attitude. Your behavior. Your values, your needs, your desires and what you want to do in response to what just happened.”
The theory is one of huge personal growth for Robbins, whose work has largely focused on individual motivation and self-empowerment, and takes her advice into a broader realm of relationships and community.
“This will be my legacy,” Robbins says. “[We’ve] all missed this hidden first step to personal growth and change…. Before you can take control of your own life, you must first stop trying to control everybody else’s.”
It also acts as an antidote of sorts to the tendency many of us have to compare our lives to others in a modern world narrated by social media feeds and slick marketing imagery.
“The power is in learning how to let people have negative opinions, because that’s what you’re afraid of,“ she says. “That’s why you’re managing everything. Because you’re trying to make sure nobody has a negative opinion about you. Well, what if you just did the opposite? What if you just let them have a negative opinion, and you then focused on saying, ‘Let me make decisions that make me proud of myself’?”
A renewed passion rises in Robbins’ voice when she talks about the Let Them Theory and its possibilities.
4 Things Mel Robbins Wants You to Know
At 56 years old, with a life filled with accomplishments like overcoming debt, raising three children, maintaining a 28-year marriage, building a successful media empire, and inspiring millions, Mel Robbins offers valuable wisdom on letting go of worrying about what others think. She encourages everyone to focus on their dreams, happiness, and life vision, reclaiming the power they may have given away to others.
Robbins believes that readers of SUCCESS® have big goals and aspirations. Here are four key tips she shares to help you get started:
- Let Them: By allowing others to live their lives authentically, you improve your own life and foster better relationships.
- Flip the Script: Instead of comparing yourself to others, use their success as inspiration and guidance in your own journey.
- Follow the Formula: Every successful venture has a blueprint. Embrace established formulas while infusing them with your unique touch.
- Get “Unstuck” in 5 Seconds: Overcome procrastination and inertia by taking small, actionable steps every day. Use the 5 Second Rule to propel yourself forward and create momentum for positive change.
This article was originally featured in the March/April 2025 issue of SUCCESS magazine.
Photography by Brian Nevins