Some years slip by in a blur, and others demand you stop and ask yourself why certain moments changed you more than you expected. This was one of those years for me. So in the first episode of this two-parter, I sit down with my good friend and ABC broadcaster Lisa Leong to compare the tools, questions and rituals we each used to make sense of 2025 - including the surprises neither of us saw coming. 

If you're craving a clearer, kinder way to understand what actually shaped your year, this conversation will give you plenty to explore.  

Lisa and I discuss: 
Lisa’s favourite reflection tool: the Agile Retrospective 
The energy audit I’m doing with my husband, including what energised us, what drained us, and the surprising things that lit us up. 
How I use an interviewing GPT to challenge my thinking, dig deeper and unpack problems. 
The Life Flow exercise: how mapping highs and lows reveals patterns.  
How the people around us shaped our year - who influenced us most, and who we influenced. 
The importance of letting go and deciding what emotional or practical baggage you don’t want to carry into the next year.  

 

KEY QUOTES 

“I still think with these reflection pieces, you should just go with what comes to you naturally, because it’s when we overthink things that we get away from a true reflection.”  

“Looking back on a year is never really about the events themselves, it’s about what they reveal.”  

Connect with Lisa Leong on Instagram and LinkedIn. Listen to her show This Working Life, and check out her book with Monique Ross, This Working Life  

If you want to try one of the reflection tools I mentioned in this episode, you can download the free Year Compass booklet here: https://yearcompass.com/ 

 

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 

Some years slip by in a blur, and others demand you stop and ask yourself why certain moments changed you more than you expected. This was one of those years for me.&nbsp;So&nbsp;in the first episode of this two-parter, I sit down with my&nbsp;good&nbsp;friend and ABC broadcaster Lisa Leong to compare the tools,&nbsp;questions&nbsp;and rituals we each used to make sense of 2025 - including the surprises neither of us saw coming.&nbsp;
If you're craving a clearer, kinder way to understand what actually shaped your year, this conversation will give you plenty to explore.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Lisa and I discuss:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="1" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" data-aria-posinset="1" data-aria-level="1">Lisa&rsquo;s&nbsp;favourite&nbsp;reflection tool: the Agile Retrospective&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="1" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" data-aria-posinset="2" data-aria-level="1">The energy audit&nbsp;I&rsquo;m&nbsp;doing with my husband,&nbsp;including&nbsp;what&nbsp;energised&nbsp;us, what drained us, and the surprising things that lit us up.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="1" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" data-aria-posinset="3" data-aria-level="1">How&nbsp;I use&nbsp;an interviewing GPT to challenge my thinking, dig deeper and unpack&nbsp;problems.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="1" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" data-aria-posinset="4" data-aria-level="1">The Life Flow exercise: how mapping highs and lows reveals patterns.&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="1" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" data-aria-posinset="5" data-aria-level="1">How the people around us shaped our year - who influenced us most, and who we influenced.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltext="" data-font="Symbol" data-listid="1" data-list-defn-props="{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}" data-aria-posinset="6" data-aria-level="1">The importance of letting go and deciding what emotional or practical baggage you&nbsp;don&rsquo;t&nbsp;want to carry into the next year.&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
KEY QUOTES&nbsp;
&ldquo;I still think with these reflection pieces, you should just go with what comes to you naturally, because it&rsquo;s when we overthink things that we get away from a true reflection.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;
&ldquo;Looking back on a year is never really about the events themselves, it&rsquo;s about what they reveal.&rdquo;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Connect with&nbsp;Lisa Leong&nbsp;on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/lisasleong/?hl=en">Instagram</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisasleong/?originalSubdomain=au">LinkedIn</a>. Listen to&nbsp;her show&nbsp;<a href="https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/this-working-life">This Working Life</a>, and check out her book&nbsp;with Monique Ross,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thisworkinglifebook.com/">This Working Life</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;
If you want to try one of the reflection tools I mentioned in this episode, you can download the free Year Compass booklet here:&nbsp;<a href="https://yearcompass.com/">https://yearcompass.com/</a>&nbsp;
&nbsp;
My latest&nbsp;book&nbsp;The Health&nbsp;Habit&nbsp;is out now. You can order a copy here:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.amantha.com/the-health-habit/">https://www.amantha.com/the-health-habit/</a>&nbsp;
Connect with me on the socials:&nbsp;
Linkedin&nbsp;(<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanthaimber">https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanthaimber</a>)&nbsp;
Instagram (<a href="https://www.instagram.com/amanthai">https://www.instagram.com/amanthai</a>)&nbsp;
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&nbsp;simple to apply&nbsp;tips to improve your life. You can sign up for that at&nbsp;<a href="https://amantha-imber.ck.page/subscribe">https://amantha-imber.ck.page/subscribe</a>&nbsp;
Visit&nbsp;<a href="https://www.amantha.com/podcast">https://www.amantha.com/podcast</a>&nbsp;for full show notes from all episodes.&nbsp;
Get in touch at&nbsp;<a href="mailto:amantha@inventium.com.au">amantha@inventium.com.au</a>&nbsp;
Credits:&nbsp; Host: Amantha Imber&nbsp; Sound Engineer: The Podcast Butler&nbsp;

You know those annoyingly successful people who seem to have it all figured out? Time to steal their playbook. Organisational psychologist Dr Amantha Imber gets world‑class achievers to spill their secrets - the daily strategies behind their success through to life hacks and productivity hacks they’d rather keep to themselves. We’re talking practical tips for boosting your output (including clever AI tools and shortcuts that’ll make you look like a genius), managing overwhelm without losing your mind, and optimising both work and wellbeing. No motivational fluff. Just battle‑tested tactics from people who’ve cracked the code.

You know those annoyingly successful people who seem to have it all figured out? Time to steal their playbook. Organisational psychologist Dr Amantha Imber gets world‑class achievers to spill their secrets&nbsp;- the daily strategies behind their success through to&nbsp;life hacks and productivity hacks they&rsquo;d rather keep to themselves. We&rsquo;re talking practical tips for boosting your output (including clever AI tools and shortcuts that&rsquo;ll make you look like a genius), managing overwhelm without losing your mind, and optimising both work and wellbeing. No motivational fluff. Just battle‑tested tactics from people who&rsquo;ve cracked the code.

Have you ever wondered if the worlds leading entrepreneurs, writers, musicians and business people construct their day differently to you?

How I Work

How to make sense of 2025 and design your best 2026, with Lisa Leong (Part 1) 

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/fa326977-3de5-4283-9b8b-af3500c58607/clips/91b58a94-bd9f-47e2-8cc0-b3a700ac9f2c/transcript

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