The Productivity Hack Jessie Swears By & Rogue Habits We Can't (Won't) Quit

Jan 25, 2026

Em Vernem, media personality and contributor, joins to unpack niche social media rabbit holes and cultural quirks. She and the team chat short, satisfying feeds like Hot Dudes Reading and Rate My Spoon. They celebrate oddly soothing restoration videos, tactile internet obsessions, and the weird corners of algorithms that keep us scrolling.

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ADVICE

Tame Your Inbox And Notifications

Organize your inbox with folders and file messages to clear mental clutter.
Turn off work app notifications on your phone and learn to say no to extra tasks.

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ADVICE

Schedule Exercise And Use A Mouse

Schedule your weekly exercise into your diary like any other appointment.
Use a mouse for laptop work to protect your back and posture.

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ANECDOTE

The No-Fizzy-Drink Saga

Niche social accounts can become oddly compelling community projects.
Mia recounts 'No fizzy drink' guy who kept followers invested for years with low-stakes progress.

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Why focus on simple productivity habits

01:26 • 42sec

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Weekly outcome anchors instead of to‑do lists

02:08 • 43sec

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Daily walks and 'hard pants' rituals

02:51 • 47sec

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Todoist and always‑accessible lists

03:38 • 2min

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Physical notebooks vs digital calendars

05:20 • 2min

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Treat energy as expensive (Taylor Swift's idea)

06:59 • 2min

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Pomodoro, deep work and timers

08:40 • 1min

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Structuring work to suit your personality

10:09 • 2min

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Nomadic working and movement boosts thinking

12:39 • 1min

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Rapid takeaways: end‑of‑day planning

13:40 • 1min

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Inbox management, notifications and saying no

14:49 • 3min

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Schedule exercise, ergonomic mouse and small rituals

17:42 • 2min

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Niche social media accounts: why they matter

19:56 • 3min

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Hot Dudes Reading & Girls Carrying Shit

23:07 • 3min

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Rate My Spoon and tactile anticipation

26:07 • 2min

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Fast garden tidy and car detailing ASMR

28:28 • 2min

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Drain cleaning, pool rescues and satisfying restorations

30:50 • 2min

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Algorithm curiosities and twin pregnancy rabbit holes

32:20 • 4min

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From Nate the Hoof Guy to hot axe men

36:14 • 2min

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Office crowdsourced oddities and stick appreciation

38:37 • 1min

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Share your own niche finds

• Mentioned in 502 episodes

Deep Work

Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World

Cal Newport

In 'Deep Work', Cal Newport argues that the ability to perform deep work—professional activities in a state of distraction-free concentration—is becoming increasingly valuable in our economy. The book is divided into two parts: the first part explains why deep work is valuable, rare, and meaningful, while the second part presents four rules to transform your mind and habits to support this skill. These rules include 'Work Deeply', 'Embrace Boredom', 'Quit Social Media', and 'Drain the Shallows'. Newport provides actionable advice and examples from various successful individuals to help readers master the skill of deep work and achieve groundbreaking results.

Are you one productivity hack away from finally nailing your life? We’ve got you. In this ‘special little treat’ episode (IT'S A DOUBLE EP, OUTLOUDERS 💃) Amelia Lester, Jessie Stephens, and Claire Murphy dive deep into the doable productivity hacks that might actually transform your working life - from the mental clarity of 'hard pants' to why Taylor Swift treats her energy like a luxury item.

Then, keep your listening ears turned on for the next part of this banger of a double EP as Em Vernem joins Claire and Jessie to carry on the conversation. Our trio bring you the delightfully unhinged content you didn’t know you needed by dissecting the niche social media rabbit holes we go down late at night. From 'Hot Dudes Reading' to 'Girls Carrying Shit' or the oddly soothing world of 'Rate My Spoon' (it’s a thing, promise), we’re celebrating the corners of the internet that keep us scrolling long after we should have been asleep. It’s fun, it’s a little bit weird, and it’s exactly what we’re into. Dive in, Outlouders — your algorithm will thank you.

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What To Listen To Next:

Listen to our latest episode: "Hold On, I Just Need To Vent"
Listen: Jessie's Twins Update & What We Really Did Over The Holidays
Listen: Blake Lively, Taylor Swift, Revealing Texts & A Masterclass In Awkward Conversations
Listen: Brooklyn Beckham, That ‘Inappropriate’ Dance & The Downfall Of A Family Brand
Listen: Brooklyn Beckham Goes Nuclear: An Emergency Meeting
Listen: The Superstar Podcaster Who’s Been ‘Red-Pilled’ & Was JLo Really That Rude?
Listen: We’ve Entered The Year Of Friction-maxxing
Listen: Our Best Heated Rivalry Theory & Taylor Swift's Mum
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Discover more Mamamia Podcasts here including the very latest episode of Parenting Out Loud, the parenting podcast for people who don't listen to... parenting podcasts.

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MOVE by Mamamia is the app that helps you fit movement into your every day. Whether you have 10 minutes, or 45, we've got the workout that fits your time, space and body. Get $20 off an annual subscription until the end of January when you use code OUTLOUD at checkout. Start your free trial today. SUBSCRIBE here: Support independent women's media

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What to read:

'I tried the "save the day" method for two weeks. It's made me more productive at work.'
‘The 5 habits of highly productive people, and exactly what happened when we tried them.’
"I tried a 'shutdown routine' to end my workday feeling productive. Here's how it went."
You're not imagining it, we've all stopped posting on social media in 2025.
HOLLY WAINWRIGHT: '9 reasons women have never been hornier.'

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