Friend Forward

In this episode, we're kicking off our 4-week series on gathering, as we enter the holiday season.
This week, host and friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson interviews Amber Mayfield Hewitt about the art of hosting, emphasizing authenticity, intentionality, and community building. They explore practical tips for creating meaningful gatherings that foster connection and joy.

Key topics addressed in this episode:
Reframing hosting as a joyful skill, not a burden
Addressing common mentalities around hosting and guest lists
Creating personal and intentional experiences
The importance of vulnerability and authenticity in gatherings
Designing spaces and activities that foster curiosity and connection
The role of recurring events in community building

🎧 BUT WAIT… THERE'S MORE.
Members of Office Hours get supplementary material with every episode to deepen their friendships. Join anytime at: https://www.betterfemalefriendships.com/officehours
This week's bonus: A five-part series on a book about women's aggression that doesn't release until next year (but as a member, you get a preview!).

ABOUT AMBER MAYFIELD HEWETT
Amber Mayfield Hewett is an award-winning event producer and founder of the To Be Hosted supper club, the creator of While Entertaining, and the author of Your Turn to Host.
CONNECT WITH AMBER:
Book, Your Turn to Host
Website: https://www.ambermayfield.com/about
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ambb_mayy/

🎙️ GET FEATURED ON THE PODCAST
Have a friendship question, hot take, or personal story you want featured? Send a voice note via Instagram DMs @friendforward or email a voice note or video to hello@betterfemalefriendships.com.

***ATTEND OUR WOMEN'S MIXER***
We're hosting "Good Chemistry", a data-driven social mixer, on November 7 at 5pm in Tampa, Florida. Grab your ticket here (seats are limited!)

WORK WITH DANIELLE BAYARD JACKSON:
Join Office Hours for bonus content and community → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/office-hours
Join the Friendship Elevated Fall 2026 Waitlist → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/friendship-elevated-waitlist
Check out more connection resources → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/resources
Become a certified relational health coach → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/relational-health-institute

FOLLOW DANIELLE BAYARD JACKSON:
Get the book "Fighting for our Friendships" → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/book
Follow on Instagram → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/instagram
Follow on TikTok → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/tiktok
Learn more about Danielle → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/website

🗣️ BOOK DANIELLE TO SPEAK
Looking for a speaker on women's cooperation, communication, and conflict? Send your inquiry to info@tellpublicrelations.com.

We're kicking off our gathering series with a gathering of our own...
One November 7, we're hosting the first of our multi-city "Good Chemistry" Tour in Tampa, Florida at Gemma Floral Wine at 5pm.
Attendees can expect speed-friending, mini connection masterclass, food + drinks, and a personal assessments to learn about (and leverage) your personal connection style.
GRAB YOUR TICKET NOW and you'll claim 6 months free access to "Office Hours" our private Patreon membership.

** Grab your ticket here. **
Learn what you can expect by watching this video.
Want to sponsor this event or bring Good Chemistry to your city? Contact us at hello@betterfemalefriendships.com.

In this episode, host Danielle Bayard Jackson steps into the role of your personal "friendship PR person," guiding you through some of the trickiest situations women encounter in their friendships.
Drawing from her background in public relations and research on women's connection, Danielle Bayard Jackson shares practical scripts, formulas, and growth-oriented responses to help you respond to testing situations without sacrificing your authenticity or reputation.

🎧 BUT WAIT… THERE'S MORE.
Members of Office Hours get supplementary material with every episode to deepen their friendships. Join anytime at: https://www.betterfemalefriendships.com/

📚 EPISODE RESOURCES & REFERENCES:
In this episode, Danielle mentioned her PR consulting business, TELL Public Relations: Tellpublicrelations.com

🎙️ GET FEATURED ON THE PODCAST
Have a friendship question, hot take, or personal story you want featured? Send a voice note via Instagram DMs @friendforward or email a voice note or video to hello@betterfemalefriendships.com.
WORK WITH DANIELLE BAYARD JACKSON:
Join Office Hours for bonus content and community → https://www.betterfemalefriendships.com/officehours
Join the Friendship Elevated Fall 2026 Waitlist → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/friendship-elevated-waitlist
Check out more connection resources → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/resources

FOLLOW DANIELLE BAYARD JACKSON:
Get the book "Fighting for our Friendships" → https://www.betterfemalefriendships.com/fighting-for-our-friendships
Follow on Instagram → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/instagram
Follow on TikTok → https://www.tiktok.com/@thefriendshipexpert
Learn more about Danielle →https://www.daniellebayardjackson.com/

🗣️ BOOK DANIELLE TO SPEAK
Looking for a speaker on women's cooperation, communication, and conflict? Send your inquiry to info@tellpublicrelations.com.

You'd call yourself confident. You have high self-esteem. You show up for your people. So a book about worth? That's for someone else… right? That's exactly what Danielle thought before she cracked open Dr. Marisa G. Franco's new book and realized, ten pages in, that she had no idea how much of her own self-worth work she'd been skipping.
In this episode, Danielle sits down with psychologist and New York Times bestselling author Dr. Marisa G. Franco to talk about her new book Worth, which she calls the prequel to Platonic. They unpack why unworthiness is really an inability to process love, how performing "goodness" in your friendships actually disconnects you from them, what it looks like when two types of high self-esteem show up in the same friend group, and why the goal isn't "I am worthy;” it's something far more radical.
CHAPTERS:
Why unworthiness makes love slip right off you — even when it's right in front of you
The two types of high self-esteem and why one of them makes you a worse friend
How "being good" trains you to abandon yourself in your friendships
Why forcing a compliment on a friend who rejects it isn't actually love
The difference between bending for a friend and feeling personally compromised
Worth isn't "I am worthy" — it's something more radical than that

🎧 BUT WAIT… THERE'S MORE.
Members of Office Hours get supplementary material with every episode to deepen their friendships. Join anytime at: https://www.betterfemalefriendships.com/officehours
This week's bonus: Members will access the full, unedited video interview.

ABOUT DR. MARISA G. FRANCO
Dr. Marisa G. Franco is a psychologist, professor at the University of Maryland, and New York Times bestselling author of Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make — and Keep — Friends. Her new book, Worth: The New Science of Self-Esteem and Secure Attachment, explores how our relationship with our own feelings shapes every relationship we have, and why self-esteem is a skill, not a fixed trait.
CONNECT WITH DR. FRANCO:
Book, Worth: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/784327/worth-by-marisa-g-franco-phd/
Book, Platonic: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/676695/platonic-by-marisa-g-franco-phd/
Website: https://www.drmarisagfranco.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drmarisagfranco/

📚 EPISODE RESOURCES & REFERENCES:
Dr. Marisa G. Franco, Worth: The New Science of Self-Esteem and Secure Attachment: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/784327/worth-by-marisa-g-franco-phd/
Dr. Marisa G. Franco, Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make — and Keep — Friends: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/676695/platonic-by-marisa-g-franco-phd/

🎙️ GET FEATURED ON THE PODCAST
Have a friendship question, hot take, or personal story you want featured? Send a voice note via Instagram DMs @friendforward or email a voice note or video to hello@betterfemalefriendships.com.
WORK WITH DANIELLE BAYARD JACKSON:
Join Office Hours for bonus content and community → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/office-hours
Join the Friendship Elevated Fall 2026 Waitlist → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/friendship-elevated-waitlist
Check out more connection resources → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/resources
Become a certified relational health coach → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/relational-health-institute

FOLLOW DANIELLE BAYARD JACKSON:
Get the book "Fighting for our Friendships" → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/book
Follow on Instagram → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/instagram
Follow on TikTok → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/tiktok
Learn more about Danielle → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/website

🗣️ BOOK DANIELLE TO SPEAK
Looking for a speaker on women's cooperation, communication, and conflict? Send your inquiry to info@tellpublicrelations.com.

You know that you need to spend more time with your friends, but as a busy woman over 30, how exactly are you supposed to do that?
In this episode, I'm sharing shocking data from the latest American Time Use Survey for 2025 to see where our time is actually going. Then I'm sharing a solution for how we can reclaim our time.
Note: Access the extended episode as a member of Office Hours.
📚 JOIN THE "SIX WITH FRIENDS" CHALLENGE WAIT LIST
To be one of the first to join the "Six with Friends" Challenge and enjoy a discount and bonus, add your name to the wait list here.

📚 EPISODE RESOURCES & REFERENCES:
2025 American Time Use Survey: https://www.bls.gov/tus/

🎙️ GET FEATURED ON THE PODCAST
Have a friendship question, hot take, or personal story you want featured? Send a voice note via Instagram DMs @friendforward or email a voice note or video to hello@betterfemalefriendships.com.
WORK WITH DANIELLE BAYARD JACKSON:
Join Office Hours for bonus content and community → https://www.betterfemalefriendships.com/officehours
Join the Friendship Elevated Fall 2026 Waitlist → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/friendship-elevated-waitlist
Check out more connection resources → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/resources
Become a certified relational health coach → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/relational-health-institute

FOLLOW DANIELLE BAYARD JACKSON:
Get the book "Fighting for our Friendships" → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/book
Follow on Instagram → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/instagram
Follow on TikTok → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/tiktok
Learn more about Danielle → https://friend-forward.captivate.fm/website

🗣️ BOOK DANIELLE TO SPEAK
Looking for a speaker on women's cooperation, communication, and conflict? Send your inquiry to info@tellpublicrelations.com.