What Women Are Talking About
Mel Robbins, WTF is SNARF?, The Baldwins, taskmasking, Katy Perry, Lauren Sanchez, Gayle King, curiosity, the loss of gut instinct, and the thing we're chuffed about doing.
Welcome to What Women Are Talking About — your weekly curation of news and pop culture from Mamamia Out Loud. We’re all over the internet so you don’t have to be.
It’s only March but 2025 just crowned its guru.
Step aside, Joe Rogan. There’s a new kid in town.
While The Joe Rogan Experience has dominated Spotify's top podcast charts for over a decade, one person has just managed to dethrone him. And chances are that if you have access to a phone, the internet, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon, a newspaper or any bookstore, you'll have come across her already.
Yes, friends, we’re talking about Mel Robbins. She of the viral #letthemtheory, The Mel Robbins Podcast, a how-to advice channel on YouTube that racks up around 800,000 viewing hours per month and boasts over 3.6 million subscribers, 8.4 million followers on Instagram, nearly 4 million on TikTok, 3.4 million on Facebook and six audiobooks that have hit number one on Audible.
*takes breath*
Meanwhile, her 2018 TED Talk, 'How to Stop Screwing Yourself Over', has amassed over 33 million views, making it one of the platform's most-watched videos.
In other words, she's a big deal. Huge.
The 56-year-old is one of this century's most influential voices in personal development, blending practical advice with an empowering, no-nonsense outlook. And while her approach may not sound revolutionary, its simplicity — backed by science — has reached quite literally billions of people.
Why Robbins and why now?
Whereas previous gurus like Sheryl Sandberg preached ‘lean in’ hustle culture, Robbins is essentially saying ‘lie down’ which is objectively refreshing.
The rise of Robbins’ success might speak to a deeper truth about the current age: in an era of newfound uncertainty, polarisation, and information overload, we’re desperate for simplicity.
When social media bombards us with contradictory advice and the world feels increasingly uncontrollable, there’s comfort in someone offering clear, actionable wisdom. With her practical, no-nonsense approach (the mirror high-five trick, the five-second anti-procrastination rule), Robbins packages age-old wisdom into digestible, shareable content. She's not reinventing the wheel — but she's really good at selling it.
READ MORE:
Listen below to hear our full Mel Robbins conversation.
WTF is SNARF and why it is all over your phone?
If you’re wondering why being online can be so relentlessly exhausting lately and why you’re often left with an anxiety hangover, it’s because of… SNARF.
Buzzfeed founder Jonah Peretti recently coined the term in a think piece to explain what dominates our social media experience. Namely, the emotional triggers that algorithms exploit.
“If the early internet was serving beer and wine that brought people together, today’s internet is dealing crack and fentanyl that tears people apart,” Peretti writes.
The SNARF acronym:
Stakes
Novelty
Anger
Retention
Fear
SNARF science
Algorithmic social platforms are no longer concerned with quality content to keep us engaged. Instead, they use deep learning AI to monetise our eyeballs. The content that triggers SNARF gets rewarded so creators produce more of it.
3 ways to de-SNARF your feed
Remember that the algorithm is responsive to your engagement patterns. Every time you scroll past a SNARF-esque post instead of engaging with it, you’re training it to show you less of that content.
Learn to recognise SNARF and how it makes you feel.
Limit exposure to manipulative content.
Actively seek out content that informs or entertains without the SNARF.
Want help escaping the SNARF cycle? Join the discussion below.
No hate. Just… curiosity.
7 kids, 2 nannies & a court date.
Welcome to the world of The Baldwins. A new reality TV show in which a luxurious Greenwich Village penthouse is the setting for Alec Baldwin and wife Hilaria to live with their seven children, two nannies and eight pets — all under the shadow of legal charges.
You may remember that:
Alec Baldwin faced criminal charges for the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in October 2021. Hutchins died on the movie set of Rust when a prop gun Baldwin was holding discharged live ammunition.
Baldwin settled a civil action filed by loved ones of Hutchins in October 2022.
Criminal charges against Baldwin were dismissed in July 2024 after a judge found that prosecutors and police withheld evidence, leading to a dismissal with prejudice, meaning the case could not be refiled.
Baldwin filed a civil lawsuit in January of this year against prosecutors in the Rust trial, alleging civil rights violations.
The movie’s weapons specialist is serving an 18-month prison sentence for involuntary manslaughter.
The civil lawsuit against Baldwin filed by Hutchins’ parents and sister remains ongoing.
The takeaways
The controversial backdrop to The Baldwins makes for a jarring tonal clash. One moment they’re discussing potential jail time, the next we’re watching birthday cake disasters and the chaos of a 66-year-old man parenting seven young children.
Then there’s Hilaria, whose camera confessionals cover everything from her babies to the absence of a prenup to what a “dark time” this is for their family. So dark, apparently, that the solution was an uplifting family reality show.
In a single sentence
At its core, the show is about a troubled man slowly unravelling in a sea of small children and tiny pets, all while grappling with litigation.
And this was only episode one.*
*Fully aware of second sentence.
READ MORE:
Alec Baldwin held the gun that killed Rust’s cinematographer. Now a judge has made a shock decision.
What the announcement for Alec and Hilaria Baldwin’s new reality TV show is hiding.
We owe it to Alec Baldwin for letting us know big families are expensive.
“I didn’t pull the trigger.” What we learnt from Alec Baldwin’s first interview.
Election limbo and the case for constitutional change.
Alfred has a lot to answer for. Not only as an ex-cyclone that wreaked havoc across much of Brisbane and South-East Queensland (and continues to do so with flooding), but also as the cause of the delay in Anthony Albanese's election announcement.
So yes, this does mean Australia is in for yet another month of pre-election limbo, thanks for asking.
But it's not just that this period of quasi-election is a bore, political advisor Charlotte Mortlock says there are far more serious implications. So much so, that she presented the case for constitutional change.
You can watch Charlotte explain why below.
What you need to know 🔍
In the run up to an election date being set, a government’s attention is generally diverted away from legitimate policy making, in order to focus on campaigning. And that means that the amount of actual governing that can be done within our current three-year federal term is cut short – which is why Mortlock is calling for constitutional change.
Listen below to Mamamia’s news podcast The Quicky to get the latest news and facts.
A girls’ weekend away but make it galactic
Here’s one that none of us expected to see on our 2025 bingo card. Katy Perry, Lauren Sanchez (Jeff Bezos’s fiancée) and Gayle King (Oprah’s BFF) are soon to be *checks notes* astronauts.
Yes, in a few months from now, Blue Origin (the rocket company belonging to Bezos) will be taking an all-female crew into space. A crew which includes Perry et al.
Gone are the days when you needed actual training to you know, GO INTO SPACE because for the low price of anywhere between $1m and $110m this could be you. With the trend of space companies cropping up a dime a dozen, space tourism is now an attainable reality for the rich — and a reality spectacle for the rest of us.
Gen Zs are geniuses. The End.
How do you prove to your boss that you’re working when you’re, um… not? It’s a dilemma Gen Z have solved for everyone and frankly, we’re leading the applause.
Amid a surge of back-to-work mandates, a new generation is figuring out office etiquette for the first time, realising that unlike WFH life, people can actually see you IRL. Which is where ‘taskmasking’ comes in – the fine art of making sure you look busy at all times.
Mastering taskmasking basics
Walk quickly around the office with a laptop or notebook clasped to your chest. Got time for a quick meeting? Hell no. She busy.
Type loudly and fervently even if what you’re typing makes zero sense. xydekrtyshsprvwqogd is all that stands between you and being landed with an extra task.
Channel Seinfeld’s George Costanza: “Always look annoyed so people think you’re busy.”
OK, what have we missed? Tell us your ways to achieve evil genius perfection below.
The 3-second hack to get your gut back on track.
We’re doing a thing. 💅
This is the thing. Mamamia Out Loud is celebrating 10 years of successful podcasting this year. If you’re finding it hard to believe we’ve been going so long and still have stuff to talk about five times a week… saaaame.
We’re one of Australia’s top podcasts which is pretty massive considering Mia started it on the floor of the office boardroom. Now we let her, Jessie and Holly sit on chairs and everything. Fancy.
So, if you’re in Sydney on 28 March and want to hear friend of the pod Amelia Lester interview the hosts of the show about the last decade of good conversation and respectful disagreement, register for your FREE place here. We’d love to see your faces, friends.
Hey Outlouders, we need your voice! 🎤
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