Podcast
Mentor Buffet
Hosted by Alexi Pappas · EN
Alexi Pappas's Mentor Buffet is a podcast about mentorship: Who influenced the people who influence us? Who helped them along their journey?
Alexi is an Olympian, filmmaker, actress, and bestselling author, and she's leaned on mentors to help her level up faster than she could on her own. After losing her mom to suicide when she was four, she needed to find other people to lean on. Now, it's Alexi's turn to peel back the curtain on mentorship. In each episode of Mentor Buffet Alexi sits down with people who inspire her—athletes, entrepreneurs, creatives, and beyond—to have conversations about chasing dreams and befriending pain, through the lens of those who have shaped them into who they are today.
34episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
LISA THOMPSON: Not Afraid To Fall
1w ago01:06:21Tap to summarizeLisa Thompson, Alexi's marathon teammate who is blind, joins us on Mentor Buffet for a beautiful conversation about growing up with a visual impairment. And she shares wisdom every step of the way. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Transcribe →Letting go of your old self
2w ago00:16:02Tap to summarizeAlexi is joined by her friend Lisa Thompson to answer listeners' advice questions about letting go of a situation you've outgrown, feeling like you live two distinct lives, and granting yourself permission when you're wired to always ask for it. Add a comfy pair of Merrells to your rotation with 25% off your first purchase using the code MENTORBUFFET2026 at https://merrell.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Transcribe →ALESSIA DE GASPERIS: We come here as souls to learn lessons
3w ago01:03:53Tap to summarizeAlessia de Gasperis, the artist formerly known as Kai who you may know from the hit songs “Never Be Like You” with Flume and “Revolution” with Diplo, joins host Alexi Pappas to share the story of the past ten years, making music and not making music, inside and outside of the institutions of the music industry. Alessia and Alexi talk about healing childhood wounds, training your nervous system, and what it means to practice gratitude. They also talk about what is the journey to freedom really, what it means to feel your feelings, and why Alessia loves pickleball. Alessia’s upcoming EP, titled “Won’t Always Be There,” expresses the themes of this conversation—the importance of gratitude, and how life is a constant state of renewal. Listen to Alessia’s music on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/27d6mRgPBvGasBzQ9KFMGO?si=gQh9DkNBTLmx5tOnimvckg Follow Alessia on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alessiadegasperis/?hl=en If recovery is something you know you should be taking more seriously, visit https://therabody.com and use the code MENTORBUFFET at checkout for 15% off one product of your choice. Add a comfy pair of Merrell's to your rotation with 25% off your first purchase using the code MENTORBUFFET2026 at https://merrell.com. Ready to upgrade your eyewear? Visit https://goodr.com/mentorbuffet to claim $10 off their first order. Visit https://GoBrewing.com/alexi50 for 50% first beer club subscription order with code ALEXI50. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Transcribe →How to know when to quit
4w ago00:19:53Tap to summarizeAlexi answers listeners' advice questions about how to know whether you should take somebody's advice, how to know when to quit, and what to do if you feel like you like your boyfriend way more than he likes you. Add a comfy pair of Merrell's to your rotation with 25% off your first purchase using the code MENTORBUFFET2026 at https://merrell.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Transcribe →Documentarian ERIN LEE CARR’s Mentor Buffet
Jun 401:11:07Tap to summarizeDocumentary filmmaker Erin Lee Carr, the director of Mommy Dead and Dearest about Gypsy Rose Blanchard and Britney vs. Spears on Netflix, as well as 13 other documentary films, joins host Alexi Pappas to share about a number of film world icons who have been mentors to her: Janet Pierson, Andrew Rossi, and Sheila Nevins. Erin, who was born two months prematurely to parents who struggled with drug addiction, also shares about her important relationship with her late father David Carr, the longtime New York Times writer and author of The Night of The Gun, a book Erin revisits every year. Many guests on Mentor Buffet corroborate that belief is the strongest form of mentorship, and more than anything else, David believed in his daughter. Erin also shares practical advice about how to send a successful cold email, what it means to come correct to a meeting or a pitch, and some basics about financial literacy. You can watch Erin’s latest project, Murdaugh: Death in the Family, starring Patricia Arquette, on Hulu. You can follow Erin on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/erinleecarr/?hl=en If recovery is something you know you should be taking more seriously, visit https://therabody.com and use the code MENTORBUFFET at checkout for 15% off one product of your choice. Add a comfy pair of Merrell's to your rotation with 25% off your first purchase using the code MENTORBUFFET2026 at https://merrell.com. Ready to upgrade your eyewear? Visit https://goodr.com/mentorbuffet to claim $10 off their first order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Transcribe →NAYEEMA RAZA: Allergic to Certainty
May 3100:59:09Tap to summarizeNayeema Raza is the host of the podcast “Smart Girl, Dumb Questions” and she joins Mentor Buffet host Alexi Pappas to share about the influence her upbringing has had on her values. Her father worked for the World Bank and their family moved around constantly. Nayeema learned how to communicate, even across language barriers. She shares how her upbringing has given her her openness, her flexibility, her curiosity, how she values experiences over achievement, how she rejects routine, and how boundaries don’t come naturally. Nayeema shares what it means to live with urgency, why it’s unproductive to take things personally, and why she’s allergic to certainty. She also shares what she’s learned getting fired, what she’s learned through breakups, and what she’s learned from guests on her show. Add a comfy pair of Merrell's to your rotation with 25% off your first purchase using the code MENTORBUFFET2026 at https://merrell.com. Ready to upgrade your eyewear? Visit https://goodr.com/mentorbuffet to claim $10 off their first order. Visit GoBrewing.com/alexi50 for 50% first beer club subscription order with code ALEXI50. If recovery is something you know you should be taking more seriously, visit therabody.com and use the code MENTORBUFFET at checkout for 15% off one product of your choice.Listen to Nayeema’s podcast, Smart Girl, Dumb Questions: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZ_OvJyBz8qlqFSrFoyt3ndvZ-xlS3QQM Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Transcribe →How do I chase my big dream when it feels like nobody’s supporting me?
May 2100:23:05Tap to summarizeAlexi answers listeners’ advice questions about how to deal with feeling like everybody around you is less ambitious than you, how to navigate a flirtatious friendship, and the best way to proceed into romantic situations with a complicated sexual health condition. Add a comfy pair of Merrell's to your rotation with 25% off your first purchase using the code MENTORBUFFET2026 at https://merrell.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Transcribe →Mother's Day Episode with DAVID GREENE
May 701:01:59Tap to summarizeDavid Greene is a longtime journalist who for many years was the host of NPR’s Morning Edition. On this episode of Mentor Buffet, he joins host Alexi Pappas for a conversation about their moms, who both struggled with depression and passed away when they were young. How do you know what to do when you’re a kid? How does my relationship to my mother affect my current relationships? What is the nature of love? David, whose journalism has taken him to active warzones and has allowed him to spend time with world leaders, shares advice he got early in his career that he still holds onto. Alexi and David also talk about not fitting in. Add a comfy pair of Merrell's to your rotation with 25% off your first purchase using the code MENTORBUFFET2026 at https://merrell.com. Ready to upgrade your eyewear? Visit https://goodr.com/mentorbuffet to claim $10 off their first order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Transcribe →MARTA POZZAN: You don't have to know what comes next
May 100:55:21Tap to summarizeCreative icon Marta Pozzan joins host Alexi Pappas to talk about femininity, what it means to be your true self, and why creation is her orientation toward the world. Marta and Alexi discuss their childhoods, and what it feels like for them to be alone. Marta shares a story about an influential early mentor of hers working at a magazine in Italy. Marta also shares her style icons and about the roles she gravitates toward as an actress. She explains why she sees the truth as a responsibility, why she’s not afraid of the work, and why she doesn’t stress about knowing exactly what comes next. Marta’s new movie Perfumania (Fior Di Latte), which she produced and starred in, is now screening all over the world: https://www.instagram.com/perfumaniamovie/ Add a comfy pair of Merrell's to your rotation with 25% off your first purchase using the code MENTORBUFFET2026 at https://merrell.com. Ready to upgrade your eyewear? Visit https://goodr.com/mentorbuffet to claim $10 off their first order. Visit GoBrewing.com/alexi50 for 50% first beer club subscription order with code ALEXI50. If recovery is something you know you should be taking more seriously, visit therabody.com and use the code MENTORBUFFET at checkout for 15% off one product of your choice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Transcribe →How do I let go of trying to be perfect?
Apr 2400:21:49Tap to summarizeAlexi answers listeners' advice questions about being busy, comparing yourself to others, and trying new things. She also offers tips on how to avoid your emails going to the junk folder, how to quit shoplifting, and how to tell your friend bring her dog everywhere is not the vibe. For a limited time, we’re partnering with Merrell to give you an exclusive offer of 25% off your first purchase using the code MENTORBUFFET25 when you checkout on Merrell.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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