'The TLDR, the too-long-didn't-read of the whole thing, is that everybody's skimming. So we need to write in a way that makes it easy for skimmers if we want to achieve our goals as writers.' Todd Rogers has been using behavioural science for good for many years, from strengthening democracy to increasing student attendance, so his kids were somewhat underwhelmed when he turned his research to writing. But think for a moment what the world would be like if everyone wrote clearly and effectively in a world where readers have little time and patience. Imagine the time not wasted, the offence not taken, the goodwill not squandered, the ideas not lost in translation.  Todd argues, and I agree with him, that better communication can lead to a kinder, more efficient world, and it starts with us. Whether it’s an email, a business report, or a book, here are practical ideas for writing that's simply easier to read. 

'Ruthlessness exists on a continuum, caring exists on a continuum, and it's about being in the sweet spots of both of those, not overplaying either one, or underplaying either one.' Amy Walters Cohen is the author of Ruthlessly Caring: And Other Paradoxical Mindsets Leaders Need to Be Future Fit, which was named overall Business Book of the Year in 2024. It's based on years of research, which revealed that the key skill for effective leadership in a complex world is the ability to hold in tension five seemingly paradoxical mindsets.  As well as talking me through these, Amy told me about the challenges and rewards of translating her research into a book, including the amount of fidgeting, procrastination and coffee-fetching involved in the early stages. She also introduced me to the 'pub test', which I am shamelessly stealing for all future writing... 

'Mom, why don't you just write it like you talk to me?' When Laura Hamill set out to write a book about the subject she knew best - the subject she'd spent years researching in theory and practice - she naturally drew on all the studies, statistics and evidence she'd gathered together to support her argument.  Turns out, that's not what the reader needed. (And it wasn't just her editor who told her that, it was her son, too.) Those in organizations with a problematic culture don't need research studies, they need help. Laura had to learn how to step out from behind the screen of academic writing, how to own her experience and her opinion, and to sit with the discomfort of uncertainty and self-doubt that involves throughout the writing process.  The result is a book that allows leaders and indeed anyone at any level to look beyond the words stencilled on the lobby walls to see how the real culture - what's expressed in how people speak and behave - is aligned with strategy, and what to do about it if it's not. 

'As we lean into artificial intelligence across every sector of business and life, how do we ensure that we're delegating the right things and keeping responsibility for the right things? And specifically, how do books and writing play into that?' In this best bits episode, I'm exploring the role of writing in human intelligence in a world where it's suddenly possible to delegate writing to an AI tool. How does generating a written output quickly and easily fit alongside the hard yards of writing for ourselves, and is there still a place for that at work? [Spoiler alert: Yes. Yes, there is.] Hear from:  Patrick Dixon on why physical books have become even more meaningful in an increasingly virtual world;  Anna Faherty on why AI takes us backwards when it comes to story-telling;  Dan Kieran on why we need the alchemy of writing to make sense of our lives;  Thomas Bergen on the renaissance of the book and capturing its soul;  Kathryn Jacob and Sue Unerman on why creativity matters so much in a world run by algorithms;  Tiffany Gaskell on how being more human benefits the organization as well as the individual;  Graham Allcott on why he doesn't let his AI avatar write his newsletter;  Colin Ellis on the importance of the discography;  Alina Addison on giving readers the courage to embrace both the too-muchness and the not-enoughness.  Get ready to be challenged and cheered by these outstanding humans.   

'They think the goal is to have the book, but no, the goal is to become the person it takes to write your book.' Dan Kieran is a publishing legend: as a co-founder of Unbound he revolutionizing the industry by empowering authors and readers. He learned a lot about himself and about setting up a business along the way, and he brought all that together in Do Start, winner of the Startup Book of the Year at the Business Book Awards.  But he also firmly believes that writing isn't just, or even primarily, about the final product; it's the process itself, the way you understand and articulate your journey, both professionally and personally. Which is why turning to AI to generate your writing outputs for you is such a dangerous, self-defeating habit for anyone who cares about ideas. Or as Dan put it: 'Why would anyone want to read something that you couldn't be bothered to write?'

'I think we are living in a renaissance of the book... AI is changing how we are looking at trusted knowledge.' getAbstract is one of the leading corporate learning platforms, and it's based on books. The founders met with a lot of resistance from publishers in the early days, but their vision of making the knowledge in books discoverable and actionable quickly became reality. One reason was the brilliance of the team of abstracters creating summaries of the books, and in this episode we talk about how AI is changing the landscape and what that might mean for this most human of industries.  I talk to getAbstract cofounder Thomas Bergan, VP and global Head of Rights Arnhild Walz-Rasilier, and Practical Inspiration author Julie Smith, who took home the Readers' Choice gong. But it quickly becomes clear I'm never going to make it as a roving reporter.... 

"As she was coached during a 15-minutes conversation, she put down each of those worries and at the end of it she was standing there in her full potential and I was like, wow, that's amazing. I want to learn how to do that." If there's a foundational text of executive coaching it's Coaching for Performance by Sir John Whitmore, first published in 1992. Sadly John died in  2017 and so Tiffany Gaskell, who co-founded Performance Consultants with John and worked with him on the 5th edition in 2017, became the driving force behind the new, post-pandemic 6th edition.  She talks to me about the power of coaching, its evolution since 1992, and how it has become so foundational for organizational and personal growth. We also explore the link between coaching and writing, and how embracing coaching principles can help you fulfil your full potential as a writer. And we're all here for that, right?

'Nice is about telling people what they want to hear. Kind is about telling people what they need to hear.' Graham Allcott's back on the podcast and all is well with the world once again. This time he's talking about the transformative power of kindness in the workplace. Many assume that leaders need to belong to Team Screw-Them-All-And-Be-Evil to come out on top, but Graham demonstrates that being kind (which is NOT the same as being 'nice') is is a smart move if you want to be successful too. There's a deeply personal story behind this which particularly resonated with me: Graham's own experience of the way his son's additional needs create a 'vessel for kindness' all around him. We talk about salted caramel, 'badass' kindness, how leading a course leads to writing a book, why two authors means twice the work, and how this is definitely the last book he'll write.* We also talk about what writing does for us - we write what we need to read - and why delegating it to AI is a poor strategy. Writers write. This is a conversation that will make you think, and which I hope will inspire you to be a little kinder, in life and work. *I for one do not believe this.

'The majority of people think their life would be better if they were more creative, but they don't know how.' There are lots of books on creativity out there, but surprisingly few at its intersection with everyday business, what Sue Unerman and Kathryn Jacob call 'pragmatic creativity'. So they developed a series of practical techniques and structured approaches for fostering creativity in every business situation, organized metaphorically by the seasons of the year. This is the third book they've written together, so I ask them about the secret of a happy, productive 'writing marriage', and also the role of their agent, Clare, as encourager, giver of advice and accountabliity partner. It's a fascinating insight into the role of collaboration in creativity, and the interplay between structure and adaptability.  If you're committed to fostering innovation and inclusivity in your own professional and creative life, this one's for you.

'We're on the edge of really very exciting things, but also tremendous risks at the same time.' Whether you're an AI enthusiast or it fills you with existential terror, this conversation will challenge your perspectives and elevate your understanding of our increasingly super-smart world. Futurist Patrick Dixon has been predicting AI for 25 years, and now he works with the world's largest corporations and governments, helping them explore the profound implications of artificial intelligence across all sectors from medicine to marketing to global security. This is not comfortable listening. We peer into the chasm (did you know that in a recent study, half of AI researchers perceive a 5% risk of AI leading to human extinction?). But Patrick remains an optimist, albeit a worried one, and hopefully you'll feel the same way at the end.  One great cause for hope is his insistence on the importance of authenticity in writing, the irreplaceable human connection that readers seek; AI-generated content cannot replicate human passion. A thought-provoking conversation that merges foresight with practical wisdom.

'We have this image of a reader being someone who's giving time and attention to our words... but online that doesn't happen.' Anna Faherty found out the hard way that there were no books to help her teach a course on 'digital storytelling' - so she had to write her own. And if you're trying to write a business book then much of what she tackles in it - writing for busy readers, structuring ideas, adding in details and taking out fluff - is relevant for you too.  Even if you're not writing a book, you'll learn a huge amount from this conversation about capturing and keeping attention online, and why AI stories are not the way forward for anyone who cares about social justice.  There's also a super-practical post-it tip and an extended discussion about Gregory Peck and leopards. You're welcome.

'I'm going to tell you how you should be doing it, but it's up to you to do it. But I'm going to dress it up in a way where the message might land 15 minutes later when you're on the bus going to town. And you're like, Oh, that's what he meant.' It takes courage, tact and humour to point out to a leader not only that there might be an issue with their organization's culture, but that the issue might be them. And that's as true when you're writing a book as when you're in the room with the person. Luckily, Colin D. Ellis has all three, and in this frankly hilarious conversation he takes us under the hood to show us how he tells difficult truths in an easy-to-read way,  We also talk about crediting the music you listen to as well as the books you read as you write, the joy of the Venn diagram, and why being Liverpudlian is a superpower.  Pin your ears back.       

'It's that little extra something that makes the ordinary into extraordinary and the impossible into the why not?' When her son was diagnosed with autism at the age of 10, it was what former head of trading and executive coach Alina Addison calls her 'butterfly moment'. While she accepted the diagnosis, she says, she didn't accept the prognosis, which was bleak. Instead she dedicated herself to discovering how to harness these extraordinary aspects of neurodiversity into something powerfully positive. The result was a deep understanding of the superpower that is audacity: caring plus courage plus non-conformity. And that's as relevant to leaders as it is to parents of neurodiverse children.  In this deeply personal conversation Alina shares with me how she interwove her personal story with her professional expertise, and developed a style of writing based on talking. We also touch on how audacity plus wine can equal a hotel in Transylvania... 

In a world that celebrates speed and working smart, adopting AI solutions and smashing simple success metrics, it can feel not just challenging but unhelpful to diverge from received wisdom.  But if we're going to create anything of real value - in business, in writing, even in sport - we need to be ready to take the less-traveled path. Because that makes all the difference.  In this Best Bits episode, hear from:  Henry Mintzberg on cherishing anomolies;  Maureen Dunne on why neurodivergence is so essential for organizations;  Sol Rashidi on resisting easy answers when it comes to implementing AI projects;  Cath Bishop on thinking more thoughtfully about success, in sport and life;  Rob  Hatch on find what works for YOU and doubling down on it; Hasan Kubba on the lean approach to writing a business book;  Dougal Shaw on responding to feedback and changing paths;  David B. Horne on rising to the challenge to 'think bigger';  Michelle Glogovac on the imporatance of asking the questions noone else is asking.  My hope is that when you spot a chance to take a more interesting path this week, you'll find the courage to see where it takes you... 

David B. Horne, creative accountant and author of the award-winning Add Then Multiply: How small businesses can think like big businesses and achieve exponential growth, has a multidimensional perspective on the Business Book Awards as entrant, finalist, winner and now judge. He also knows a thing or two about the power of books for business growth. In this week’s episode, we discuss how books serve as a permanent record of knowledge, helping businesses learn, grow, and establish credibility. As well as attracting the right clients, they can also help you ‘consciously uncouple’ from clients that no longer align with your goals. And did you realise that writing a book - a journey of personal and professional development - can also count towards your CPD hours? A classic EBBC blend of practical tips and inspiration. Get the kettle on.

Our definition of success has led us to a place that's actually constrained us from exploring what we're capable of. We're not getting the innovation or the collaboration that we want. We need to think about things differently.' If you're enthralled by the drama of the Paris Olympics, here's a thoughtful take on what you might be missing if you're focused primarily on the medals table. World Champion rower Cath Bishop has competed at three Olympic games. When she won silver in 2004, the pain of missing out on gold led to a decades-long reexamination of the idea of success, across sport, education, politics and business.  As an international conflict negotiator and a leadership coach, as well as an advisor to several sporting bodies, she now makes the case for a richer, more human, more sustainable vision of what it means to win well - what she describes as the Long Win.  This conversation will change how you watch the Olympics, how you think about your business, and perhaps even what you value in life. 

'It's an unfair advantage to have a platform, it massively helps, don't get me wrong. But it's totally possible to do it without one.' When Hasan Kubba and Ash Ali got together to write 'The Unfair Advantage: How you already have what it takes to succeed', they assumed they'd self-publish. They even put up a 'lean' version of the book on KDP. But as it turned out they had publishers fighting over it (sensibly, as it went on to be named Business Book of the Year), and Hasan has gone on to help other authors achieve the same feat.  While having a big following certainly helps in the battle for publishers' attention, Hasan argues that it's possible to get a book deal with a major traditional publisher without it. It's not unlike securing funding for a start-up, which is the other area in which he is an expert.  Discover the vital elements you need in place and the process to follow to get yourself and your book concept in front of agents and publishers with the best chance of success, with lessons for ALL kinds of content creation. 

'Embrace AI, but also make sure that you evolve as an individual and you understand the art of the possible while still staying grounded in the art of the practical.' Implementing AI in your business isn't easy, but NOT implementing it could be disastrous. Sol Rashidi is a former C-suite executive turned AI consultant who knows more than most about the real-world challenges and opportunities in AI deployment. She's been in the field since 2011, developing enterprise-grade applications that integrate AI into business processes effectively, and now she's written a book to help leaders avoid the pitfalls and reap the benefits. But how do you write a book on such a fast-moving technology? You write it FAST, and you keep it focused on principles, not specific tech tools. Sol reveals how she managed to write her book in two and a half months (or 26 years, depending on which way you look at it...), and how she learned to love the challenge of marketing.  AI can be an augmenter and accelerator in your business, and this episode can do the same for your writing. 

Henry Mintzberg is quite simply a legend, and my personal business thinking hero. When I was studying his writings for my MBA I could only have dreamed that one day I'd be chatting about writing to him on my podcast - and sometimes when dreams come true, the reality is even better than you dared imagine. Along with the nuances of management theory and social change, he revealed insights into his own remarkable writing process. And these elements aren't as different as you might think: his insistence on the non-linear nature of writing and the importance of 'cherishing anomalies' reflects his disciplined yet emergent and above all human approach to strategy.  Despite the fact that he has so many successful books to his name, Henry Mintzberg is suprisingly wide and creative in his use of other forms of content, such as video, in his mission to make complex ideas accessible. I particularly love the 'Irene question': what can YOU do to drive social change - within your personal life, community, business, government, even on a global scale? It’s a profound inquiry that challenges us to consider our own role in shaping a better world. This conversation felt like an uplifting, enlightening, mind-expanding gift: I hope you feel that way too. 

Journalism is changing, which means journalists have to change too. And a great example of this is the way that BBC reporter Dougal Shaw has reinvented his own role from pure video journalism, transforming what started as corridor conversations with business leaders who happened to be visiting the BBC into a high-profile series that runs on rolling news channels, on social media, in radio and podcast formats, and now as a book. It's a story of intrapreneurship, which is fitting for a series that draws out lessons in both entrepreneurship and corporate leadership from visionary leaders who are often willing to be more vulnerable away from the finance and figures that are the focus of their more traditional BBC interviews. From the power of storytelling to the psychology of interviewing, there's lots of great stuff here for business book writers, and there's pure gold from Dougal's own experience of breaking down the book into writable parts and discovering the interconnections and patterns in the material.  Not only CEO secrets, but journalistic and writing secrets too. You're welcome. 

'This is the moment to embrace authentic neurodiversity inclusion as a core organizational value. It isn't the whole solution to anything, but it is part of the solution to nearly everything.' As we hurtle towards the workplace of the future, where human and machine intelligence will interplay in ways we can't yet fully imagine, one thing is clear: standard modes of thinking are becoming less valuable to organizations as algorithms become ever more efficient at replicating them. Nonlinear thinking, hyper focus, intuitive leaps and the ability to tolerate social discomfort and resist groupthink - attributes that have until now been under-valued and under-employed - will become more valuable as complements to AI. And that means that neurodivergent people will become ever more valuable within organizations. That's the argument of Dr Maureen Dunne, cognitive scientist, neurodiversity expert and member of the neurodiversity community herself, and it's also the topic of her new book. As well as making this case, she also shares her own neurodivergent approach to writing: an interdisciplinary, visuospatial 'conceptual synaethesia'. A rich and extraordinary conversation, at every level.

'We can't really understand what failure teaches us until we achieve success after failure. So it's the success actually, that is more instructive.' If you're navigating business or personal growth challenges, this episode could be a game-changer. Rob Hatch challenges the widely accepted narrative that failure is our greatest teacher. Instead, he argues, the most useful lessons come from our successes. Instead of studying what to avoid, let's try to better understand what to repeat. If you're curious about the underlying forces that drive success, or if repeated advice about learning from failures doesn't resonate with you, this fresh perspectives on 'learning from success', together with his simple, practical ideas for how to start, might be just what you need.

At this risk of going a bit meta, this is a brilliant conversation podcast about how brilliant podcast conversations are… Michelle Glogovac is an author and host of the My Simplified Life podcast, and a frequent guest on other podcasts. She’s passionate about the special, intimate connection that podcasts create between authors and their readers, and the triple win of a good conversation: great content for the host, great marketing for the guest, great insights for the listener. If you’re sitting there waiting to be asked to be a guest on a podcast, then that stops today: discover exactly how to pitch yourself effectively to your perfect podcast host. And if you’re thinking about hosting a podcast of your own, then this is just pure gold.

‘That last pillar before you go make your decision: is it ethical? What's the effect it's going to have? The feedback I've got from a lot of people was, oh, I never really thought about that.’ While ethics has become more talked-about in business, it might not be something you’ve considered as a factor in your business writing. But you should. In this Best Bits episode, I draw together insights from a wide range of recent guests that show how the moral position you take – in work and life – informs your writing, and the impact that has on both your reader and yourself. Nothing heavy and duty-bound here, just a joyful, thoughtful exploration of how we can write and work in a way that benefits the world, those around us, and ourselves. Hear from: Corey Keyes on the opposite of languishing; Alison Taylor on why business ethics matter to all of us; David McQueen on being braver about decision-making; Lucy Adams on why HR is about allowing people to flourish rather than being responsible for them doing so; David Roche on the obligations we have to our leaders; Louise Brogan on taking an ethical, human approach to social media; Meredith Norwich on why publishing is an industry full of principled people.

‘So they go, “Hang on, I've got to look confident… I have to have all the answers,” which is the worst place to come from.’ Becoming a first-time CEO is a lonely experience, and David Roche (who’s got that particular t-shirt himself) believes every new CEO should be assigned a coach and mentor, because if we expect our leaders to have all the answers, we’re setting them - and ourselves - up for failure in a complex, fast-moving, uncertain world.  David has been involved in the book trade for many years, but that didn’t insulate him from the hard work of authorship, including the paranoia of wondering if his draft was ‘good enough’…  Merging the personal with the professional, and storytelling with business strategy, this is an episode that offers coaching insights and writing wisdom – and which will be particularly interesting if you’re aiming for or already seated in the CEO's chair, or writing for those sitting in it. 

'We basically treated legal compliance as a proxy for ethics, which has never really been a particularly good fit.' I think we can all agree the world is ready for some fresh perspectives on the ethical obligations of the business world: Alison Taylor is here to provide them.  All too often there are stark differences between company statements and their day-to-day actions, as they perform the delicate dance between ethical decisions and turning a profit. Alison questions long-standing business beliefs, including the assumption that compliance is a proxy for ethical behaviour, proposing a new approach that accounts for companies' internal systems and also their role within broader society.  She also reveals how she went about writing her book 'Higher Ground', including how she workshopped her thoughts in the classroom and sparked dialogues online as a sounding board. Insightful, challenging, practical and energising - classic Extraordinary Business Book Club stuff.

"Do what you can in the circumstances you are given right now. And don't wait for the systems in the world around you to change in order to get some life into your life." Most of us are only too familiar with 'languishing' - the opposite of flourishing. It was when Adam Grant wrote his famous 2021 New York Times article that we all recognised it as the defining post-pandemic emotion, and it continues to dominate discussions of wellbeing. Grant's article credited research by Dr. Corey Keyes, a distinguished professor emeritus and a leading voice in the study of mental health and human flourishing. In this week's conversation, Corey explains the personal and professional reasons why he's spent his career advocating for a more proactive approach to fostering mental health — and the profound implications of translating a lifetime of research into a book that can change lives. This extraordinary conversation will reshape how you think about mental health, not just in business, but in every facet of life.

'For an academic book, you are looking to demonstrate that you stand on the shoulders of giants. For a practitioner book, you ARE the giant... But you're not the first giant.' Meredith Norwich is a senior acquisitions editor at Routledge, part of Taylor and Francis Publishing, and she has seen a LOT of business book proposals. What makes a proposal stand out for her? You might be surprised... Packed with valuable insights for first-time authors and behind-the-scenes glimpses into the publishing industry, this is essential listening for anyone contemplating writing a business book. 

I’m just back from an exhausting, exhilarating few days at London Book Fair. My ears are still ringing slightly, my feet hurt, I need to spend a few days on my own in a darkened room and I can’t even tell you how many follow-up actions are on my to-do list – in other words, it was a great Fair. But what does that mean? As publishers, we at Practical Inspiration Publishing are all about selling books, but we don't actually sell our books at book fairs: so what DO we do? Here's an insider's guide to what actually goes on at London Book Fair for book trade professionals and for authors and illustrators, and what you can expect (and what you can't) if you decide to rock up to Olympia next year.

Louise Brogan helps entrepreneurs and professionals elevate their LinkedIn game. In this week's conversation she explains why LinkedIn is so important for businesses and why most people are so dreadful at it. From fundamental mindset to the most effective tactics right now, it's a masterclass in maximising your profile on LinkedIn without losing your soul.   She's also in the throes of writing her first business book, so this is a great report from the frontline if you're in that place and want some comradely advice and support.  And finally, Louise's no-nonsense, super-helpful LinkedIn how-to videos have also made her something of a YouTube star, so I made sure to ask her all about that too... 

"It was fantastic, just as a sheer exercise in putting something out there and being brave and saying, these are my thoughts, what does everyone else think?" Lucy Adams spends her days helping HR leaders reimagine their profession, and her classic work HR Disrupted and its sequel, The HR Change Toolkit, are critical to this mission. Her message is simple: treat employees as adults. But the implications are profound. In this conversation, we talk about how HR is changing (or not), the impact of COVID on the profession and on Lucy's decision to write a new edition, the delight of writing and the grind of editing, and the exhilaration and terror involved in opening your freshly minted book for the first time...

'The beautiful part of it, which is also the hardest and the most painful part, is the editing... [if] you put a book out into the world which will be around longer than you, you might as well put in the effort to get it right.' David McQueen has never been one to shy away from tough conversations. In his book, The BRAVE Leader, he challenges all leaders to lean into the difficulty, to be more courageous and ambitious in their decision-making for inclusivity.  And it turns out that willingness to engage and that refusal to settle served him well when it came to writing his first book. More at home on the stage than the page, David found this a steep learning curve, and he's open and honest about what he discovered along the way.  But just like those tough conversations, the hard work of writing and editing paid for itself in spades, and the book is now the 'centre of gravity' for his talks and other activities.   If you need to be braver with your book and/or your leadership, this week's episode is for you... 

Following last week's quadricentennial episode, a slightly belated but still brilliant best bits episode, showcasing the shiniest gems from the last few Extraordinary Business Book Club conversations.  The theme is pushing through discomfort, and it brings together extraordinary stories, illuminating insights and gloves-down challenges from:  Errol Doebler on emotional regulation and the discipline of writing;  Sir John Tusa on the traits of people who Get Things Done; Bonnie Wan on writing her way out of the darkest moments;  Andy Brown on taking ideas further;  Sara Dalrymple on getting through the discomfort of selling;  Gillian Camm on getting through the discomfort of editing;  Naren Aryal on breaking through the trust barrier;  Sara Lloyd on how publishers, and writers, face up to challenge.  Includes ice baths, coffee, deep breaths and showing up. 

How can I start running when I absolutely hate running? What's your one big, albeit lesser known, tip for writing your first book? Have you tried smoked chili peanut butter yet? When I put out the call for questions for this quadricentennial episode, I could never have imagined the response. From the playful to the profound, these questions have got me thinking and I hope they, and my answers, will get you thinking too.  So for one week only, to celebrate this 400-episode milestone, you're asking the questions in the Extraordinary Business Book Club and I'm in the hot seat. Very strange, but very fun! 

"You have to get in front of what you're writing. You have to look at it and you have to type a key. If you don't, it's just not going to happen." Errol Doebler knows a thing or two about discipline. He's been a Naval Surface Warfare officer, Navy SEAL officer, FBI special agent and SWAT operator before founding his leadership consulting firm Ice Cold Leader, which is also the name of his new book.  Why ice-cold? Because ice baths form a key part of his own self-regulation regime, and because managing emotional responses is so foundational to effective leadership. Errol had to develop a conscious process for emotional regulation after a traumatic injury robbed him of that area of his brain; that process turns out to be valuable for anyone facing the stress and emotional discomfort that accompany leadership.  Prepare to be challenged and inspired in roughly equal measure.  

"We've been innovating forever, before digital formats came along... in a way we have some of the natural abilities we need. We need to remember that and not be too scared when new things come along." Publishing is an industry that runs on creativity and intellectual property. So how are book publishers responding to the challenges and opportunities of generative AI? Can the book, one of our oldest technologies, survive this latest technological revolution? And if so, what are the implications for authors?  As the first Global AI Lead for Pan Macmillan, one of the world's largest publishers of trade fiction and non-fiction, Sara Lloyd is grappling with these very questions. In this week's conversation she sheds some light on the conversations taking place in the industry, and the ways that publishers themselves are using AI. She also gives her best tip for authors writing their first book, and it's probably not what you expect... 

'It's an uncomfortable struggle to land that title of the book, land that sharp, sticky center of the life brief, but it is so worth it.' As a brand strategist, Bonnie Wan knows how to put together a creative brief that makes meaning out of mess, that goes straight to the essence of what a company is really about. So when she reached a moment of crisis in her own life, she reached instinctively for that skillset. The result was The Life Brief, not a document but a 'practice of permission' she has adopted in all areas of life now for cutting through the noise and finding what really matters to you, the vision you recognise at a visceral level when you unearth it.  Along the way she discovered the power of exploratory writing, the power of developing her ideas through speaking and workshops, and the art of leading the reader step by step through an experiential book.  You're going to love this. 

"The vast majority of business owners would happily spend 99% of their time creating and recreating and tweaking and iterating on the product side of things, because we know how to do that, we feel of service when we do that. But in order to help people, or to do the work that you love, you have to also talk about it." For many small business owners, 'selling' feels deeply uncomfortable. So too often they don't do it, and the result is the business struggles along or even fails because not enough people know how great their product is. Sound familiar?  Sara Dalrymple sees you. Not only that, she has empowering and energising news for you: your sales skills are already better than you think, and you don't have to spend hours of you day selling. In this week's episode, she tells me why our assumptions about selling are outdated, and what effective, zero-ick, 21st-century small-business selling looks like.  (And also how she came to write a book by accident.)

'It's the stories we respond to in life. It's people's stories we respond to, and then... you can tease out the lessons. You don't go for the theory head on.' There are many, many books about creativity: what it is, how to do it, what steps to follow. When journalist and arts administrator Sir John Tusa turned his attention to the topic, he took a rather different approach. His book is dedicated to 'bright sparks who refuse to become damp squibs', and it tells the stories of people who match that description. Around the world, against great odds, overcoming ridicule and opposition and invariably making many people furious along the way, these individuals achieved extraordinary creative success. From these varied experiences, we see the commonalities emerge and we can't help but be inspired to do things differently. That is the power of storytelling, and this is a masterclass in how to go about it. 

"If you're thinking about writing a book... that's a gorgeous, sexy goal, but it's very unlikely to happen as long as it stays an outcome, a goal, in that form. But if you start to ask yourself, Okay, what's the process that's going to lead to that outcome? Then it starts to get real.' When you tell people you're a publisher, you discover pretty quickly that a significant proportion of the population wants to write a book some day. And no wonder. Writing a book is one of the most significant, rewarding uses of your time on the planet, it will challenge and stretch you, deepen your thinking and allow you to connect to the top thinkers in your field, and that's all before the book itself is out there, building your reputation and reach.  So if you're determined to achieve that goal this year, how will you go about making it happen? Here are some ideas on first steps that will help you turn that dream - or indeed any other - into reality. Happy new year; let's make it count. 

'Sometimes it's just writing to get it out... you can almost interrogate it more. You can hold it in your hand and you can explore it and you can look at it and then maybe it becomes something or maybe it doesn't.' Having a good idea is a great place to start when you're writing a business book. But it's only a start. Then comes the real work: testing that idea out, articulating it clearly, and - perhaps hardest of all - drawing out the 'so what?'  Andy Brown has been through all these stages with The Emotional Overdraft - from recognising that business growth often has a human cost that's hidden from the balance sheet but is no less real for that to developing effective metrics to help leaders manage that cost for themselves and their people.  If you're a 'doer' whose go-to answer is 'just work harder' or a writer struggling to develop your idea or - even better - both, this is for you.  

Kathryn Bishop, CBE and Gillian Camm are seasoned members of both private and public sector boards. And they've learned that effective governance comes down not to rigid structure and process but to one of the most ancient human skills of all: conversation. Conversations on the right topics, with the right people, in the right way.  So it made sense of course to structure the book around the various types of conversation essential for strong boards; but what they hadn't expected was that their collaborative writing process would itself embody the honest, energised, respectful conversational style they were advocating in the book.  Essential listening if you're a board member, a writer, or simply a human being who needs to talk to other human beings to Get Things Done.     

'That book that's for everyone is for no one, right?' Naren Aryal is laser-focused on the business of publishing for business. In this week's episode he talks to me about how Amplify Publishing Group developed from a single title to one of the world's leading business imprints, the unique goals and expertise of business authors, and why it's so important that you're clear on the target market for your book. (Spoiler alert: it's not 'everyone'.)  

"Business books are unique because they are in that sweet spot between business activity and creative endeavour, that’s why I love them so much, that’s why I do this podcast, that’s why you’re here. It’s a beautiful thing." Too often, people see writing a business book as something comletely different from business itself. It's not. In this best bits episode, I draw together the choicest insights of recent Extraordinary Business Book Club guests to demonstrate that writing a business book is in fact a business activity, not simply because it contributes to your business success, but because it draws on your core business strengths. And the skills you develop as you write your book will develop those skills, too.  You'll hear from:  John Simmons on individuality in business and writing Ginny Carter on the persuasive power of stories Adrian Hornsby on the 17-mattress problem (or how you stop your stories from dying under their own weight)  Ed Haddon on how telling your own stories can build human connection  Josh Bernhoff on why stories beat bald facts every time Catherine Stothart on bringing in workshop experience to increase your writing's impact Katie Lewis & Matthew Stafford on why having a co-author is like having a co-founder Karen Williams on assembling an expert 'project team' for your book Luan Wise on making your marketing smarts the foundation for your book.  It's so full of inspiration you're going to wish you had an extra of ears... 

"I started where I think a good marketer should start, by asking some people to read the book and give me their feedback." Luan Wise, a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing with over 20 years of experience in B2B and B2C sectors, is an expert on all things social media. She's also become something of an expert on writing and publishing business books over the last few years, and in this week's conversation we talk about social media tactics, the difficulty of writing about a topic that won't stand still, the value of collaborating with academia for research, the difficulty of fitting the writing around the day job, and advanced procrastination strategies. With insights into both traditional and self-publishing, this is a classic Extraordinary Business Book Club cocktail of practical inspiration.

'If I'm not doing my own writing, I'm not properly thinking.' You'll be familiar with the idea of visual identity in branding: but what about verbal identity? John Simmons, director at Interbrand, recognised that the language you use as a business is just as important - if not more so - as the logo, colours and fonts.  He also realised that most businesses were doing this badly.   In this week's though-provoking conversation, he talks me to me about human-to-human business writing, the value of learning to write well, and the joy of it. In his Dark Angels workshops he delights in introducing business people to their own creativity and building their writing confidence. Because when we write well, we think well, and when we think well, we are powerful. 

"Unless you have a way to differentiate, then you don't really have any sort of justification for putting out yet another book." There's not much Josh Bernoff doesn't know about writing business books. And he knows that differentiation is everything. Whether it's your unique perspective or a groundbreaking solution, finding your distinctive edge makes all the difference.  He also encourages authors to think of their book as a pivotal part of a larger ecosystem - and to create a sense of immediacy right up front to capture engagement. This conversation is a treasure trove of actionable advice and profound insights, a must-listen for anyone aspiring to write a business book that makes a difference.

Ginny Carter, experienced ghostwriter and award-winning author in her own right, discovered when judging the self-help category for the Business Book Awards that authors were consistently making the same mistakes. The answer was obvious: write a great self-help book explaining how to write a great self-help book! In this super-practical episode, Ginny pinpoints three critical missteps often made by self-help authors, demystifies storytelling, and introduces her ingenious 'chunking' technique as a way of structuring your content in a way that's more effective for the reader. Whether you're an aspiring self-help author or a seasoned pro, this episode not only celebrates the profound impact of self-help literature but also delivers invaluable insights to take your own writing from good to great.