LinkedIn can feel pretty soulless right now, with endless AI-generated posts and very little that actually sticks.

In this bonus episode, I chat with Cherie Clonan, founder and CEO of digital agency The Digital Picnic, about a different way to think about content that doesn’t chase reach or virality. We unpack her idea of return on intimacy, how she designs LinkedIn content across the funnel, why depth and resonance matter more than volume, and how she uses AI for idea generation and hooks without losing her human voice. By the end of this episode, you’ll have a simple lens to use the next time you’re wondering what to post and why.

Cherie and I discuss:

• What return on intimacy really means and why it changes how you create content

• How top, middle, and bottom of funnel content works on LinkedIn

• Why being someone’s saved post or screenshot matters more than impressions

• How to measure sentiment and depth when performance metrics fall short

• Using AI for idea generation and hooks without sounding generic or soulless

Key quotes

“Return on intimacy is what I crave, not return on investment.”

“Don’t ask how many people might see it. Ask whether someone would screenshot it.”

Connect with Cherie Clonan on Instagram and LinkedIn and check out The Digital Picnic.

My latest book The Health Habit is out now. You can order a copy here: https://www.amantha.com/the-health-habit/

Connect with me on the socials: Linkedin (https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanthaimber)

Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/amanthai)

If you are looking for more tips to improve the way you work and live, I write a weekly newsletter where I share practical and simple to apply tips to improve your life. You can sign up for that at https://amantha-imber.ck.page/subscribe

Visit https://www.amantha.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

Credits:
Host: Amantha Imber
Sound Engineer: The Podcast Butler

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Coming back from a few days off work should feel refreshing. Instead, it often means opening your inbox to 200 unread emails and not knowing where to start. In this How I AI episode, we look at how AI can help you get oriented faster by scanning, sorting, and summarising what’s landed while you were away.

If email is a constant source of friction in your workday, this conversation will help you approach it more strategically. We talk through practical ways to use AI to triage your inbox quickly, catch up on long email threads, and create daily or weekly digests that surface what actually needs your attention.

We also cover how to use AI to write better replies in your own voice, reflect the communication style of the person you’re replying to, and schedule meetings directly from an email thread using Microsoft Copilot.

Neo and I discuss:

• Which AI tools can access your inbox and what that depends on

• Using AI to summarise unread emails after time away

• Creating tables that show what matters, what needs action, and what can wait

• How to generate daily or weekly inbox digests automatically

• Catching up on long email threads with clients, projects, or teams

• Using sent items to identify emails you still need to respond to

• Writing better replies by analysing your own writing style

• Reflecting someone else’s communication style to get better responses

• Scheduling meetings directly from email threads using Microsoft Copilot

Connect with Neo Aplin on LinkedIn and via inventium.ai, where he leads Inventium’s AI training and upskilling work with organisations and teams.

My latest book The Health Habit is out now. You can order a copy here: https://www.amantha.com/the-health-habit/

Connect with me on the socials:
Linkedin (https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanthaimber)

Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/amanthai)

If you are looking for more tips to improve the way you work and live, I write a weekly newsletter where I share practical and simple to apply tips to improve your life. You can sign up for that at https://amantha-imber.ck.page/subscribe

Visit https://www.amantha.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

Credits:
Host: Amantha Imber
Sound Engineer: Martin Imber

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

**BEST OF**

In an effort to make time for ourselves, many of us fall back on using To Do lists and time blocking. But often these strategies can end up with the same result: getting lost in chasing productivity. So how do we make time for the things that truly count?

Oliver Burkeman is a New York Times bestselling author of books such as ‘Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals’ and ‘Meditations for Mortals: Four Weeks to Embrace Your Limitations and Make Time for What Counts’. Oliver is also a regular columnist for The Guardian.

If there is anyone who truly understands the philosophy and psychology of time management and happiness, it’s Oliver.

Oliver shares:

• The mindset you should be using when you first approach a task if you want it to be achieved easily
• How you can free up time by minimising time spent on worrying
• The strategy you should be utilising instead of a to-do list to actually create a sense of achievement
• Why being open to distractions can actually be beneficial

Key Quotes:
"Don't start from the position that unexpected things happening must be bad."

“There is this tendency to set things up in your mind so that you can never feel like you’ve done something well enough."

Connect with Oliver via his website, or get his latest book, Meditations for Mortals, here

My latest book The Health Habit is out now. You can order a copy here: https://www.amantha.com/the-health-habit/

Connect with me on the socials:

Linkedin (https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanthaimber)

Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/amanthai)

If you are looking for more tips to improve the way you work and live, I write a weekly newsletter where I share practical and simple to apply tips to improve your life. You can sign up for that at https://amantha-imber.ck.page/subscribe

Visit https://www.amantha.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

Credits:

Host: Amantha Imber

Sound Engineer: The Podcast Butler

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

**BEST OF**

In our modern workplaces, is suffering from burn out now simply a matter of when, rather than if?

For a slightly different episode, I’m joined by Sabina Read to discuss my own personal experience with burn out and how you can manage it if it hits you.

Sabina is a distinguished Australian psychologist who makes regular appearances on Radio 3AW's Afternoons program, works as SEEK's Resident Psychologist and co-hosts the top-rated podcast Human Cogs.

This is a dive into the world of burnout so you can understand why it happens, what influences it and how you can survive it.

Sabina and I share:

• The signs of incoming burnout that many of us miss
• The external factors that can cause you to burn out
• Sabina’s tips on what you can do to avoid burnout
• The very specific thing that helped me recover from burnout

Key Quotes:

“This is not something you wrap in a bow and neatly take forward so you never burn out.”

“We do need to differentiate burn out from exhaustion.”

Connect with Sabina via her website, Instagram, or check out her podcast Human Cogs.

My latest book The Health Habit is out now. You can order a copy here: https://www.amantha.com/the-health-habit/

Connect with me on the socials:

Linkedin (https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanthaimber)

Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/amanthai)

If you are looking for more tips to improve the way you work and live, I write a weekly newsletter where I share practical and simple to apply tips to improve your life. You can sign up for that at https://amantha-imber.ck.page/subscribe

Visit https://www.amantha.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

Credits:

Host: Amantha Imber

Sound Engineer: The Podcast Butler

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

**BEST OF**

Do you find yourself constantly trying to ensure people like you? Bending over backwards to avoid giving bad news or make someone unhappy?

What if the extra reassurance, and the fear of being too direct are actually causing more harm than good?

To dive into this topic, we’re joined by Laura Henshaw to talk about how she realised her need to be liked was affecting those working under her.

Laura Henshaw is a dynamic force in the health and wellness industry. As the co-founder and CEO of the incredibly successful KIC app and community, she leads a mission to reshape how people perceive wellness and their relationship with themselves.

And they are certainly having an impact, with the KIC app currently sitting at over 2.5 million users and reaching people in over 120 countries.

Outside of business, Laura co-hosts the chart topping Kicpod podcast, where she engages in candid conversations on health, wellness, and personal growth. She also shares her insights through a monthly column in Vogue.

Laura shares:

• The ways your people-pleasing could be holding you back.
• Why giving feedback as a "shit sandwich" doesn’t actually work.
• How she changed her people-pleasing behaviour.
• Why you’ll never succeed at getting everyone to like your decisions.
• The one thing you should prioritise over kindness when giving feedback.

Key Quotes:

“How hard I work has nothing to do with how worthy I am as a person.”

“Most decisions you make there is going to be someone that’s not going to like the decision.”

Connect with Laura on Instagram, subscribe to KIC APP and follow KIC Pod

My latest book The Health Habit is out now. You can order a copy here: https://www.amantha.com/the-health-habit/

Connect with me on the socials: Linkedin (https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanthaimber)

Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/amanthai)

If you are looking for more tips to improve the way you work and live, I write a weekly newsletter where I share practical and simple to apply tips to improve your life. You can sign up for that at https://amantha-imber.ck.page/subscribe

Visit https://www.amantha.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

Credits:

Host: Amantha Imber

Sound Engineer: The Podcast Butler

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

**BEST OF**

You can be ticking off goals, crushing deadlines, and still feel like you’re missing the point. If your time and energy aren’t going where they should, it might be because you’re tracking the wrong scoreboard. In this episode, we explore how to reset the way you measure progress - so your actions align with what truly matters.

I’m joined today by Sahil Bloom, New York Times bestselling author of The Five Types of Wealth and Managing Partner of SRB Ventures. Sahil shares how to stay grounded in the middle of chaos, build richer relationships, and create space for reflection - without needing a complete life overhaul.

We unpack how to spot when you’re drifting, what a broken scoreboard looks like, and why tiny rituals can have an outsized impact when life gets overwhelming.

Sahil & I discuss:

• Why the scoreboard you use shapes your priorities and choices

• Sahil’s monthly “think day” and how it helps him course-correct

• A mindset shift that radically simplified his business and life

• His “buyer or seller” test for deciding what to drop

• A 3-minute journaling ritual that helped him survive book launch

• The underrated power of sending thoughtful messages to friends

• What “social wealth” really means—and why it’s the key to a great life

• How he fuels creativity through reading, walking, and reflection

• His cautious take on AI’s future impact on work and society

• A simple way to start your day that replaces doomscrolling with curiosity

Key Quotes

• “If you have the right scoreboard, your actions align around the right things. If your scoreboard is broken, your actions will be too.”

• “When you think something nice about someone, let them know right then.”

Connect with Sahil Bloom on Instagram, X (Twitter), and LinkedIn and his website. Check out his latest book The Five Types of Wealth.

My latest book The Health Habit is out now. You can order a copy here:
https://www.amantha.com/the-health-habit/

Connect with me on the socials:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanthaimber
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amanthai

If you are looking for more tips to improve the way you work and live, I write a weekly newsletter where I share practical and simple to apply tips to improve your life. You can sign up for that at https://amantha-imber.ck.page/subscribe

Visit https://www.amantha.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

Credits:
Host: Amantha Imber
Sound Engineer: The Podcast Butler

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

**BEST OF**

That beautiful leather-bound journal you bought with the best intentions? The one now gathering dust under a pile of books? You're not alone.

After 40 years of failed journaling attempts, Michael Bungay Stanier finally cracked the code to sustainable reflection—and it's likely nothing like what you've tried before.

Michael is the author behind the Wall Street Journal bestseller The Coaching Habit (which Brené Brown called "a classic"), with over 1.5 million books sold worldwide. Named the #1 Thought Leader in Coaching by Thinkers50, his insights have been featured in Harvard Business Review, Forbes, and Fast Company.

In this conversation, Michael shares:

• His surprisingly simple journaling breakthrough that eliminates the most common barriers to consistency
• A powerful weekly reflection framework that drives tangible results (not just empty introspection)
• The counterintuitive boundary system he uses to prevent work overload while maximizing impact
• Why he rejects popular "word of the year" goal-setting (and what he does instead)

Whether you're a serial journal abandoner or simply seeking more intentional reflection practices, Michael's practical approach offers a refreshing alternative to traditional journaling methods that actually sticks.

Key Quotes:

“One thing that is really helpful is just to know I don’t have to say yes right away.”

“I have failed to successfully journal since I was 16. I’m now 57, so I’ve been attempting to journal for 40 years.”

“If you just start asking yourself what you want day in and day out it just starts forcing a deep clarity.”

Connect with Michael via his website, Instagram, LinkedIn, or buy the Do Something That Matters Journal.

My latest book The Health Habit is out now. You can order a copy here: https://www.amantha.com/the-health-habit/

Connect with me on the socials: Linkedin (https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanthaimber)

Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/amanthai)

If you are looking for more tips to improve the way you work and live, I write a weekly newsletter where I share practical and simple to apply tips to improve your life. You can sign up for that at https://amantha-imber.ck.page/subscribe

Visit https://www.amantha.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

Credits:

Host: Amantha Imber

Sound Engineer: The Podcast Butler

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.