I got leadership wrong in 2024. That’s how I started a newsletter earlier this year that scared the hell out of me to publish. In this episode, I share what happened - and the high cost of indecision, fear, and people-pleasing. Today, I’m turning the mic on myself. I’m joined by psychologist and friend Sabina Read to unpack the personal and professional fallout of the hardest year I’ve had as a leader. From delaying redundancies to clinging to hope, to letting fear and likability steer my decisions - I share the choices I regret, what I learned from them, and how I’m showing up differently in 2025. Sabina and I discuss: Why I refused to consider redundancies (and what it cost) How fear, not strategy, drove my biggest decisions The freeze response I didn’t realise I was stuck in What my therapist told me that sent me into a spiral How psychological safety broke down on my team - and what we do now to protect it The cultural check-in we do every 6–8 weeks to catch small issues before they explode Why listening deeply matters more than making the “right” decision How I started letting go of the need to be liked Key Quotes “Hope is not a strategy. But that’s what I was relying on.” “I had a very high need to be liked—and that was making me a really bad manager.” “You can’t rest on your laurels with culture. It takes conscious work.” 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
[email protected] Credits: Host: Amantha Imber Sound Engineer: The Podcast Butler See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
