How I Work

Latest Episodes:

TED2019 Interview Series: 1800-GOT-JUNK Founder/CEO Brian Scudamore's extreme method for avoiding email on weekends and holidays May 22, 2019

Show notes

My guest today is Brian Scudamore. Brian is the founder and CEO of O2E Brands (a $400 million business) which is the umbrella company for 1-800-GOT-JUNK?, WOW 1 DAY PAINTING, You Move Me, and Shack Shine.

Brian's companies have been featured on ABC Nightline, Good Morning America, Dr. Phil, CNN, The Today Show, Oprah, and CNBC. Brian’s story has been featured in Fortune Magazine, The New York Times, Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and he contributes regularly to Forbes, among other publications.

He is also the author of WTF?! (Willing to Fail): How Failure Can Be Your Key to Success.

In this chat, we cover:

Brian’s weekly rhythm and rituals
Why Brian doesn’t accept one hour meetings
Why Brian never goes into the office on Mondays
Brian’s hacks for being efficient with his inbox
How Brian optimises his commuting time
How the type of work Brian is doing determines where he works from
How Brian structures every single one of his meetings
Brian’s trick for staying off email during weekends and holidays
Why he insists that staff stay off email during their holidays
Brian’s approach to protecting his mental health
How Brian manages digital distractions
Brian’s approach to getting the most out of TED
Brian’s technology hacks for being more productive

You can grab a copy of Brian’s book, WTF? here, and find him on Instagram and Twitter.

Visit amanthaimber.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

If you are looking for more tips to improve the way you work, I write a short monthly newsletter that contains three cool things that I have discovered that help me work better, which range from interesting research findings through to gadgets I am loving. You can sign up for that at http://howiwork.co

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Three science-backed strategies to get a great night's sleep May 20, 2019

Show notes

This episode looks at three science-backed strategies for having a great night’s sleep.

If you are a Sydney or Melbourne listener, sign up for our Workday Reinvention Program. Register for the Sydney program here and Melbourne here. Enter the code HOWIWORK at checkout.

Are you the parent of a little person? Check out my sleep school blog here.

Grab yourself an Oura ring to track your sleep.

Visit amanthaimber.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

TED2019 Interview Series: Penguin Random House's Adrian Zackheim on how he decides what to publish May 15, 2019

Show notes

Have you ever wanted to write a book and get it published? Or maybe you have already done so? If you have any interest in this field, I think you’ll like today’s interview which is with Adrian Zackheim. Adrian is the founder and publisher of Portfolio, a business book imprint at Penguin Random House.

At Portfolio, Adrian has published bestselling books, such as Purple Cow by Seth Godin, Start With Why by Simon Sinek, and The Smartest Guys in the Room by Bethany McLean and Peter Elkind. More recently, he published Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport, who I had on the show recently, and they have also published many of Ryan Holiday’s books, one of my favourite writers.

I feel like every second great business book I read is published by Portfolio, so I was very keen to talk to Adrian about his approach to book pitching and making decisions.

This is a shortish interview episode, and I think it’s a really relevant one to current and aspiring writers. I hope you enjoy it.

Visit amanthaimber.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

My Favourite Tip: Pamela Meyer's Index Card solution for planning the day May 13, 2019

Show notes

My favourite tip from my interview with lie-spotting expert Pamela Meyer was her strategy for organising her day on index cards.

You can find the full interview here.

Visit amanthaimber.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

TED2019 interview series: Google VP Jerry Dischler on balancing Maker and Manager time, identifying top talent, and using OKRs in his family life. May 08, 2019

Show notes

My guest today is Jerry Dischler. Jerry is the VP of Product Management at Google, where he leads the product team for Google's search ads business, the product and engineering teams for YouTube advertising, and the product and engineering teams for Google's home-grown sales and support tools.

We cover a lot of ground in this interview, including:

How Jerry balances Maker and Manager time
Where Jerry’s best ideas come from
Jerry’s approach to managing his inbox
Jerry’s morning ritual
What Jerry’s annual, quarterly and weekly planning process looks like
How Jerry uses OKRs in his family life
Jerry’s insights for identifying top talent in the recruitment process
Jerry’s go to sources for inspiration
How Jerry decides on which books to read
Jerry’s approach to getting the most out of his week at TED

You can find Jerry on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Visit amanthaimber.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Seven lesser-known apps that make me more productive at work May 06, 2019

Show notes

In this episode, I talk about seven (lesser-known) apps that make me more productive at work. Check them out at:

Visit amanthaimber.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

TED2019 interview series: Priya Parker on how to create amazing gatherings May 01, 2019

Show notes

I recently attended TED2019 in Vancouver and recorded a bunch of interviews with some very inspiring speakers and attendees while I was over there.

My first interview in this series is with Priya Parker.

Priya Parker teaches people to gather better at home, work, school and in our communities. She is the bestselling author of The Art of Gathering and is also a strategic facilitator with a background in conflict-resolution. Her company Thrive Labs has worked with organisations as varied as MoMA, the World Economic Forum and the International Finance Corporation on strategy, vision and purpose.

In this interview, we cover:

Priya’s advice for how to have great sales meetings
How Priya approaches her own client meetings
The role language plays in how Priya gets to know her clients’ motivations
Priya’s favourite questions to ask at gatherings
How to get better at "holding the silence" in group work
Priya’s process for creating her TED talk
How Priya manages her nerves before high stakes events
How Priya would improve the TED conference experience.

You can learn more about Priya at priyaparker.com and sign up to her newsletter. Get your hands on a copy of Priya’s bestselling book The Art of Gathering.

Visit amanthaimber.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Three ways to make behaviour change easy - no willpower required Apr 29, 2019

Show notes

This episode looks at three strategies for effortlessly changing your behaviour - no willpower required.

Visit amanthaimber.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

My Favourite Tip: Dr Jason Fox on how to identify fulfilment factors Apr 22, 2019

Show notes

My favourite tip from my interview with Dr Jason Fox was on how he identifies fulfilment factors - critical things that need to be present in our lives for us to feel happy, energised and fulfilled.

You can find the full interview here.

Visit amanthaimber.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

My Favourite Tip: Baratunde Thurston on Sunday afternoon reflections Apr 17, 2019

Show notes

My favourite tip from my interview with comedian/writer/performer/producer Baratunde Thurston was hearing about his Sunday reflection ritual.

You can find the full interview here.

Visit amanthaimber.com/podcast for full show notes from all episodes.

Get in touch at amantha@inventium.com.au

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.