How I Work

• Quick Win: Why your “default behaviour” isn’t actually yours — and how to change it

  What if the way you argue with your partner or push yourself at work isn’t actually yours - but something you absorbed decades ago? In this Quick Win, I’m joined by educator and author Lael Stone, who explains how the stories we inherit in childhood silently shape our beliefs about relationships, money, and success. Lael calls these “imprints” - and once you start recognising them, you can finally begin to choose your own patterns instead of replaying old ones. Lael and I discuss: What “imprints” are and how they form through family dynamics. The surprising ways childhood beliefs can dictate our career choices and relationships. Why understanding our imprints helps us break unconscious habits. How to recognise when fear or loyalty to family stories is keeping us stuck. The freeing realisation that changing your story isn’t disloyal—it’s growth. KEY QUOTE “A lot of the imprints we have are deeply unconscious. We don’t even know they’re there.” Connect with Lael Stone on Instagram, LinkedIn and her website, and check out her latest book Own Your Story. Listen to the full conversation with Lael 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 [email protected] Credits: Host: Amantha Imber Sound Engineer: The Podcast Butler See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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• The counterintuitive brainstorming rule that made Exploding Kittens a global hit.

  How do you lead a team that kills thousands of ideas - and still keep everyone excited to create again the next day? That’s business as usual for Elan Lee, co-creator and now CEO of Exploding Kittens. You might not know his name, but there’s a good chance you’ve played one of his games. Exploding Kittens became one of the most backed Kickstarter campaigns in history - raising nearly $9 million from over 200,000 backers in just 30 days - and has since sold more than 60 million games worldwide. In this episode, Elan and I dive into how he’s built a creative culture that thrives on iteration and honesty. He shares the psychology behind turning casual players into superfans, why creative constraints beat blue-sky brainstorming every time, and how his team’s “no, kill it” rule turned chaos into innovation. Elan and I discuss: How Exploding Kittens became one of Kickstarter’s biggest success stories The psychology behind turning casual players into superfans Why creative constraints spark better ideas than “blue-sky” brainstorming How Elan runs design retreats that generate thousands of ideas in days The “no, kill it” rule that keeps creativity high and egos low Balancing creativity with commercial success - knowing when to walk away How a single question - “Do you want to play again?” - determines when a game is done KEY QUOTES “Games shouldn’t be entertaining - they should make the people playing them entertaining.” “Every great idea starts out terrible. You just have to give it room to evolve.” “We don’t use ‘yes, and…’. We use ‘no, kill it,’ because we know we can generate a thousand more ideas.” Explore Elan’s games at explodingkittens.com and connect with him on Instagram, X (Twitter), and LinkedIn. If you haven't already, listen to the bonus episode where Elan talks about how he uses AI to unlock creative ideas 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 [email protected] Credits: Host: Amantha Imber Sound Engineer: The Podcast Butler See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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• (BONUS) Exploding Kittens CEO’s “walking with AI” ritual to unlock ideas.

  The secret to using AI well might actually be teaching it to shut up. In this bonus episode, I’m joined by Elan Lee - the brilliant mind behind Exploding Kittens and Throw Throw Burrito. While you might expect someone like Elan to use AI to design wild new worlds or characters, that’s not what he does at all. Instead, he’s found a way to make AI his creative sparring partner - one that never interrupts, never judges, and somehow helps him think more clearly. In this chat, Elan shares how he uses AI to stress-test ideas, solve tricky design problems, and even guide his morning creative walks. His approach flips the script on AI - using it not to generate answers, but to ask better questions. Elan and I discuss: How Elan uses AI to uncover blind spots in game instructions Why he treats AI as a creative sparring partner, not a substitute for imagination The surprising way he uses AI to fix in-game economies and balance point systems His daily three-hour “thinking walks” with ChatGPT - and the prompt that changed how he works The one mindset shift that turns AI into a powerful tool for creativity and reflection KEY QUOTES “When you are working with AI, you don’t let it answer questions for you - you let it ask you questions.” “The best ideas come from combining old ideas in new ways. AI just helps me see those connections.” Explore Elan’s games at explodingkittens.com and connect with him on Instagram, X (Twitter), and LinkedIn. If you haven’t yet listened to my full conversation with Elan - where we dive into creativity, failure, and how he built a global game company that thrives on iteration - you can find that episode 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 [email protected] Credits: Host: Amantha Imber Sound Engineer: The Podcast Butler See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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• Quick Win: The dangerous AI shortcut that quietly erodes your judgment

  AI can feel like the ultimate shortcut – no blank pages, no stuck moments. But what happens when you hand over too much of the thinking? In this Quick Win, I chat with business professor and author Scott Anthony about how he uses AI as a sparring partner for ideas, and why keeping ownership of the hard thinking is essential if we want to stay sharp. Scott and I discuss: Why AI can easily replace the discomfort that leads to original thinking How Scott uses multiple AI models (ChatGPT and Claude) to brainstorm from different perspectives The importance of setting context and personas when prompting Where Scott draws the line between useful AI help and losing his “thinking muscle” A simple test to check if you’ve outsourced too much of your thought process KEY QUOTES “Use AI to brainstorm, to challenge, to widen the lens – but keep ownership of the hard thinking.” “Once you stop struggling with the blank page, you risk losing the very skill that makes your ideas valuable.” Check out Scott’s new book Epic Disruptions. Listen to the full conversation with Scott 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 [email protected] Credits: Host: Amantha Imber Sound Engineer: The Podcast Butler See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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• Ambitious CEO and present parent? Dr Catriona Wallace on refusing to choose.

  It’s one thing to be told you can’t have it all. It’s another to be told you can’t be both a CEO and a mother. When an investor said exactly that to Dr Catriona Wallace, she didn’t flinch. She refused to choose and went on to found Flamingo AI, one of the world’s first artificial intelligence companies, becoming one of only two women in history to list a female-led tech company on the ASX. In this conversation, Catriona and I talk about what it takes to hold your ground in the face of sexism and scrutiny, how she stayed true to herself while leading a global company, and why she believes you can be both an ambitious leader and a present parent. We also dive into her work in ethical AI, exploring how she uses AI tools not just to improve productivity but also to reflect, make better decisions, and even coach her own AI companions toward self-awareness. Catriona and I discuss: The investor who told Catriona she couldn’t be both a CEO and a mother - and why she refused to choose The million-dollar investment she walked away from (because of her nose ring) How she learned to lead without compromising who she is What “non-linear thinking” looks like when you’re raising five kids while running a global company How she uses AI companions for reflection, productivity, and even spiritual insight The eight core principles that guide ethical AI development Why authenticity - not conformity - is the future of leadership KEY QUOTES “The moment you start to compromise and change, more things will compromise and change - and you lose who you are.” “I’m in deep love with AI, even though I’m one of the people saying it might kill us - so we’d better do it ethically.” Connect with Dr Catriona Wallace on Instagram, LinkedIn, and via her website. Check out her book Rapid Transformation for more on how to embrace change through technology and leadership. 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 [email protected] Credits: Host: Amantha Imber Sound Engineer: The Podcast Butler See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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How I Work: Podcasts in Family