Learn and Work Smarter
Whether you're a student or a working professional, the Learn and Work Smarter Podcast delivers the clarity, strategies, and encouragement you need to stay focused, organized, and on top of your tasks.
Hosted by Katie Azevedo, M.Ed.—a private executive function coach with 20 years of teaching experience and a deep background in ADHD and cognitive science—this show is your practical guide to building the real-life skills that school and work demand but rarely teach.
Episodes cover a range of topics, including time management, productivity, studying smarter, focus strategies, task initiation, and executive function habits. Each topic is approached through a lens of neuroscience, behavioral psychology, and deep compassion.
You’ll learn systems that are teachable, sustainable, and immediately actionable.
No fluff. No hype. Just real strategies for getting things done, reducing stress, and showing up as the most capable version of yourself.
Episodes
121 episodes
121. Frustration Tolerance: What It Is, Why It Matters, and How to Build It
Frustration tolerance is one's ability to sustain attention, endurance and emotional composure during frustrating tasks.While we all get frustrated from time to time, having a low frustration tolerance can have a serious impact on our wo...
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Episode 121
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37:09
120. Note-Taking During Phone Calls, ADHD Accommodations at Work and School, and Supporting College Students (Q&A)
In this Q&A episode of the Learn and Work Smarter podcast, I answer three questions submitted by listeners of the show.Question 1: How to take notes during phone calls.Question 2: How to support a struggling college...
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Episode 120
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23:00
119. My Top 10 Favorite Tools for Productivity and Organization
The work we do is more important than the tools we use. But that said, having the right tools can make a difference in how productive and organized we are.In this episode of the Learn and Work Smarter podcast, I’m sharing with you my 10 ...
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Episode 119
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32:48
118. The Real Reason for Test Anxiety — And Why It Has Nothing to Do With Nerves
Sweaty palms. Racing breath. A pit in your stomach. And the worst one of all, a blank mind.Test anxiety does not feel good, and it most certainly doesn’t help your grades. But in this episode of the Learn and Work Smarter podcast, I make...
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Episode 118
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25:26
117. Building a Personal Operating System to Manage Information
The way I teach it, a personal operating system is a set of systems and routines we use to manage the information that comes at us all day long.Whether we're students or professionals, we're constantly bombarded with information we can i...
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Episode 117
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42:10
116. Understanding What You Read and How to Know If You're Performing Well at Work (Q&A)
You're putting in the work. You're doing the readings. You're showing up. So why does it still feel like you're missing the mark?In this month's Q&A episode, I'm answering two listener questions that are completely differe...
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Episode 116
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36:38
115. How to Be Dangerous at School and Work (10 Traits of People Who Are Hard to Overwhelm)
The most dangerous people in school and work aren't always the smartest in the room or the ones grinding the hardest. They're the ones who are steady, focused, and nearly impossible to knock off course.In this episode of the Learn and Wo...
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Episode 115
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29:03
114. Working Late AGAIN? 5 Reasons Why You're Still at the Office that Have Nothing to Do With Workload
It's 5 PM, everyone is leaving the office, but you’re staring at your to-do list thinking, “Oh my gosh, I’m going to be here all night.”When we regularly can’t get our work done within typical office hours, we’re quick to think it’s beca...
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Episode 114
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36:29
113. The 6-System Ecosystem for School and Work (And Why Working Harder Isn't Enough)
Struggling to perform in school or work is rarely the result of just one missing skill. Sure, your procrastination tendencies might have to do with poor time management skills, but that's not the full picture. Academic and professio...
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Episode 113
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37:41
112. Office Transition Strategies and the Power of Color in Study Methods(Q&A)
In this monthly Q&A episode of the Learn and Work Smarter podcast, I answer two questions submitted by listeners of the show.Question 1: A working professional asks for tips as he transitions back to in-person office work afte...
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Episode 112
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23:09
111. What to Do When You Don't Like Your Boss or Teacher
ALL relationships are hard. But the hardest ones are those we can't avoid, like at school and work. In this episode of the Learn and Work Smarter podcast, we dive into the reality that sometimes we don't like our boss or our teacher...
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Episode 111
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36:32
110. How to Think: Why It's Hard, Why It Matters, and How to Do It in an AI World
Thinking is supposed to be hard. It's supposed to be messy and fragmented and dead-endy. It's supposed to make us feel vulnerable and like we don't know the answer, the solution, or the idea.That's the nature of thinking. It's SUPPOSED t...
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Episode 110
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33:10
109. Work-Life Balance Is a Lie: 3 Better, Way More Practical Ways to Think About Balance
Everyone says you need balance. But what if the entire concept of “balance” is nonsense in the first place?In this episode of the Learn and Work Smarter podcast, I break down why traditional work-life balance theory doesn't work, and mor...
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Episode 109
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29:29
108. Three Things You’re Overcomplicating About Getting Things Done (That Should Be Simple)
We tend to make things way more complicated than they need to be. And honestly? It's because thinking and planning feels easier than actually sitting down and doing the thing.In this episode of the Learn and Work Smarter podcast, I revea...
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Episode 108
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26:49
107. Simplifying Multi-Client Task Management and Managing Afternoon Energy Slumps (Q&A)
In this monthly Q&A, I answer two questions submitted by listeners of the show. While the questions are different in their details, the fundamental theme of today’s show is consistent: the key to learning and working smarter is knowing what...
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Episode 107
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33:32
106. The Anti-Goal Goal-Setting Strategy: 3 Tweaks That Change Everything
Most people set goals completely wrong. They focus on outcomes they can't control, ignore their real schedules and energy levels, and wait for January 1st like it's some magical reset button. Then they wonder why they quit by February.In...
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Episode 106
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27:53
105. The High Performer's Trap: Why Being Capable is Exhausting You
Are you someone who says yes because you can see exactly how to make it happen? Do people come to you because they know you'll deliver? And are you so darn exhausted because of it?In this episode, I'm diving into the high performer's tra...
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Episode 105
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32:14
104. 3 Reasons Your Study Methods Stopped Working (And How to Fix Them)
You had a study system that worked perfectly. Then suddenly... it didn't. What happened?In this episode, I'm breaking down the #1 reason why legitimate study systems stop working: developmental transitions. Whether you're moving from hig...
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Episode 104
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27:29
103. How Long Should I Study and How Do I Stay Motivated? (Q&A)
In this month's Q&A episode, I'm answering two questions that hit on some of the biggest study and productivity myths out there. Question One: A college student asks how to study for six to eight hours straight without cr...
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Episode 103
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26:01
102. The Friday Review: A Simple Weekly Habit for Calm Productivity
Most of us end our week by simply stopping, closing the laptop, and walking away. But then we wonder all weekend long why we can’t stop thinking about work or school.That’s where the Friday Review comes in.This simple 5–10 minut...
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Episode 102
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22:36
101. Digital Declutter Strategies for School and Work: 5 Clutter Zones and How to Handle Them
Digital clutter is easier to ignore than physical clutter, because we can hide it behind folders and tabs. But eventually, digital clutter builds up so much that it impacts our focus and productivity even more than the physical mess around us.<...
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Episode 101
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32:34
100. 100 Tips to Learn and Work Smarter (Celebrating 100 Episodes!)
This is our 100th episode of the Learn and Work Smarter podcast! To celebrate this cool milestone, I've gone back into every single episode and extracted one key tip to re-share with you.Grab your pen and paper (or grab the transcript at...
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Episode 100
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40:31
99. Traditional Jobs vs. Entrepreneurship, and Preparing for What Comes After College (Q&A)
In this Q&A episode of the Learn and Work Smarter podcast, I’m answering two listener questions from college students who are both wondering what comes next.One student is deciding between a traditional job and entrepreneurship, and ...
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Episode 99
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26:53
98. Secret Meeting Skills Nobody Teaches (But Everybody Notices)
There’s more to meetings than just showing up and trying to sound smart. In fact, there’s a whole hidden curriculum in most meetings that is more about how you act than about what you say.In this episode of the Learn and Work Smarter pod...
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Episode 98
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23:24
97. How to Fix a Bad Day: Practical Strategies You Can Use When Your Day Falls Apart
All the strategies in the world won't protect you from having an occasional bad day. Bad days are just ... part of being human. But how we respond to a bad day can make all the difference in the world.In this episode of the Learn and Wor...
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Episode 97
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30:44
