Meet the leaders: Emma Rusher

Emma Rusher is the associate director of content programming APAC at Audible. She’s a leading player in the worlds of tech, publishing and digital entertainment. Here, she reveals why her Instagram feed is full of teen and tween beauty hacks.

What are you reading and or listening to at the moment?
Andrea Clarke’s audiobook Adapt: Mastering Change in Four Steps. It’s like having a wise, energetic mentor whispering life-changing insights directly to me.

I play inspirational audiobooks like this in the car, in the hope some of it will rub off on my children, too. But mainly we switch between mind-expanding audiobook wisdom and Taylor Swift bangers.

If you could re-read one book, what would it be?
This question is almost impossible to answer by someone in publishing! You’ll always find me immersed in ‘what’s next’, with book stack turrets on my bedside table. To re-read a book would feel indulgent. Perhaps The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth to take me back to my teenage days plucking spy thrillers from family bookshelves on long summer holidays.

Podcasts or video streaming? And do you have any recommendations?
Podcasts! I’m a longtime listener of Pivot by tech journalist Kara Swisher and Prof Scott Galloway who offer sharp insights and bold predictions around the biggest stories in tech, business and politics. I actually stay for their banter because they are exemplars of the art of arguing, respectfully. Content warning: Scott’s jokes!

Who do you admire and why?
Vivian Tu, who went from Wall Street to TikTok. She forged her business, Your Rich BFF, from sharing savvy, bite-size finance literacy tips to empower young people, and now, all of us.

What is your Instagram feed most likely to be full of?
Tween and teen beauty hacks (my phone is not always my own!).

Do you have a favourite designer?
My go-to Australian designer is Bianca Spender for the cut of her timeless pieces.

What brings you joy?
A cheese board, champagne, surfing badly on a sunny day and the beautiful mayhem of family and friends gathering. Not necessarily in that order. Some days, cheese wins.

Is exercise a must or a grind and how do you fit it into your lifestyle?
I am one of those annoyingly chirpy larks and exercise early. On weekends you’ll usually find me playing tennis, kayaking or snorkeling around local spots. Agatha Christie said surfing is “one of the most perfect physical pleasures I have known”, and it’s something I’d love to do more often!

What do you hope people will remember about you?
[That I am] an uplifting, cheeky and prescient life enthusiast.