The Extraordinary Business Book Club

'Because we are the truth tellers, we say really what's going on. Because we use humour, we get away with saying stuff that other people can't... The art of clowning about, really paying attention, serves me in every place that I go.' I'm willing to bet you've never met a Corporate Clown Coach before, not unless you've already met Em Stroud. In this fascinating conversation we talk about clowning and its role in work and life, finding fun in writing, and how we rediscover the parts of ourselves that may have been neglected over the years and integrate them into our day-to-day lives for more joy, playfulness and whole-hearted success. 

What kind of timescale guides your thinking? Do you focus on how great things will be when you make a killing selling your company decades from now, or do you prefer not to think beyond the end of the day? When it comes to business success, choosing your time horizon really matters.  Jodie Cook completed her first start-up/exit cycle in 10 years, and she recommends it as a way of planning your strategy more purposefully: 10 years is 'long enough to think long term... but also short enough to not waste time.' She focuses her time equally purposefully at the daily level too, working in 'blocks' to ensure the work gets done effectively and that she protects time to train and to rest - REALLY rest - in her day. And of course she makes time to write, because that's her way of processing everything.  Make time for this. 

Interested in social media, podcasting, business books and business? It's hard to think of someone who can speak with more authority on all of those than Bruce Daisley, ex-European head of Twitter, host of the No.1 business podcast Eat, Sleep, Work, Repeat, author of The Joy of Work and all-round business guru.  So it was a joy to talk to him about all of this, and particularly his new book, Fortitude, and why it's NOT called Resilience. Along the way we take in TikTok, Elon Musk, the tombstone aesthetic, and why the platform you build for your book is at least as important as the book itself.  Listen, and be ready to take notes.   

'Strategy is effectively the map which takes you to your destination... tactics are the vehicles you're going to use to get there.' Jenna Tiffany has worked with many businesses who mistook tactics for strategy. She decided the best way to help them - and many others - was to write a book. Because books, as her foreword writer Dan Barker points out, 'can literally perform magic', providing all the value of the most expensive course on earth, in a fraction of the time, at a fraction of the cost.  In this fascinating conversation, we discuss not only marketing strategy, but the way in which that strategic approach is so essential for writing a business book. 

Students of finance don't typically expect to be grappling with theology and philosophy. But over a long career in Wall Street, Dr Kara Tan Bhala has collected many fascinating real-life stories that demonstrate just how central an understanding of ethics is for a career in finance. She's also shown that it's possible to write about complex ideas in a clear and straightforward way, using stories rather than abstract theories. (Parable, as she points out, is simply an ancient name for case study.) A fascinating topic, and an equally fascinating conversation with a groundbreaking woman.   

The internet is a funny old place. Most of us can't live (or certainly work) without it, and our online relationships and conversations are just as real and valuable as those we have offline. But we're complex beings with lots going on under the surface, and the internet is no different.  Psychologist Ian MacRae is fascinated by the 'dark' side of online - the 'unconscious of the internet' - and how we can use a more nuanced understanding of that to better inform our online lives.  He also has some wise words on how to go about pulling complex ideas and vast quantities of research into a readable book - even when it means creating a volume of untold stories as a byproduct... 

When it comes to writing a business book, are you a planner, or a pantser? If your natural style is more seat-of-the-pants than perfectly planned, you'll love this unapologetic take on writing from Lucy Cohen - lying on a settee, writing from the heart, ideally after a large glass of red wine.  But don't be fooled: there's nothing insubstantial about her take on the realities of entrepreneurship and where you need to focus for long-term success (hint: forget the first million).  A joy of a conversation, taking in business, anxiety, oversharing, and powerlifting. 

How do you generate, manage and sustain the energy that's needed to write a business book? Physically, mentally, socially and even spiritually, there are many aspects to this question.  Luckily there are many great writing and business brains on hand to answer it. Learn from the best:  Simon Alexander Ong on the different types of energy and how they work together to create flow;  Rob Wozny on how the spiritual energy of purpose can power writing;  Sam Dogen on why writing is like exercise, and the interplay of mental and social energy;  Mark Hayes on drawing energy from others and particularly the power of the podcast;  Bernard Marr on the flywheel effect of the conversations you have at work and the conversation you have on the page;  Katy Murray on breaking down big creative projects and generating the 'starting energy' you need to tackle them;  Felicity Cowie on the importance of being fired up, and the need to contain that fire;  Sara Tate on managing the energy-sucking effects on uncertainty and coming out the other side stronger;  Zena Everett on just getting started.  Whether you're energized or exhausted as the holidays draw to a close, I guarantee you'll find something here to light you up. 

'[We're] not actually dropping into the deep flow work and thinking that we have when we write, because that feels wonderful; we're switching all the time from one thing to another.' Are you crazy busy? Of course you are. Me too. Rubbish, isn't it? Stop multitasking (you know it's not working) and take half an hour to listen to Zena Everett, author of The Crazy Busy Cure, and purveyor of sane, practical advice on how to stop wasting time on stuff that doesn't really matter and focus on the stuff that does.  Like writing. 

'If you stay consistent, you grow your brand, you grow your message. I think sooner or later, something good will happen and you won't be able to anticipate what it is.' What story about money do you buy into? Sam Dogen, aka The Financial Samurai, wants you to rethink financial freedom, and he's used writing as the way to enable his own extraordinary life-after-work.  Think you're too busy to write? Don't listen to this if you want to be able to keep telling yourself that...