The Extraordinary Business Book Club

How are events changing in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic, and what does that mean for you if you're an author?  Award-winning events producer Sasha Frieze talks about how digital events are evolving, what the hybrid event of the future might look like, and the opportunities and challenges for speakers and authors in this new world.  From how (and when) to pitch for a speaking gig to smart tips for selling your book when you can't sit and sign it at the back of the room, this is every author's survival guide to the new normal of speaking and events. 

In a pandemic, we discover that we can do things we’d never imaged we could. Companies that have told staff for years that they can’t work at home have discovered that in fact they can, Tony Crabbe discovered that he could write a whole book in 16 days, and Hachette discovered that they could publish a book three weeks after it was delivered. In this week’s conversation Tony reflects on what he (and his family) discovered about working at that intensity, and shares some of the insights from the book about how to live and work more productively and with less stress in these extraordinary times. We also talk about what really restores us, and how we can navigate our way out of crisis and into a new, better normal.

'Systems transform lives.' After discovering the power of systems and processes in her career with McDonalds, Marianne Page now spends her time teaching small business owners that life-changing systems and processes aren't just for big companies.  We also talk about the joy of management, the power of the deadline, and the smart way to write a book... 

'It's part of building a physical legacy. The work that I do now, working with people all the time, you are aware of the changes that people make in their lives, but I've also been rather envious of this friend of mine who's an architect and he was showing the portfolio of all the buildings that he's been designing; you know, to write a book is, is part of a legacy, not only for your children, but for people over the next 10, 15 years. And of course I'll be adding to that legacy with all the stuff that I want to produce in the future.' Richard Fox has been helping people make relationships work at work for many years now, but the process of writing his book revealed new insights and connections (as it always does...) and also became an exercise in collaboration that reflected the very principles he was writing about. A fascinating insight into some of the key issues that underpin our relationships (and therefore our ability to Get Stuff Done) as well as the process of turning deep work done face to face into material for a book.

"Leaders... really can bring a lot of joy into people's lives. They can uplift them, they can inspire them, they can help them connect to their purpose, they can support them, they can provide them compassion. That’s what we really care about, and the more leaders who choose to do that, because it's got massive performance benefits as well as being intrinsically a wonderful thing, the better." It's no exaggeration to say that leadership is life-changing, either for good or ill. Between them Katy Granville-Chapman and Emmie Bidston have experience of leading and training leaders in pretty much every context - military, sport, business, educational, government and public sector - and they've discovered that in every sphere the principles of successful leadership are surprisingly simple: know, love and inspire your people.  In this conversation we explore how they went about translating those principles into a book and accompanying course, and the benefits of writing with a supportive co-author. 

"When faced with personal challenges and business challenges, it's going to take a lot of energy to overcome them. So why not use that energy wisely and focus on the things you can influence and forget about the stuff you can't?" Rob Law, aka Trunki Daddy, has faced more personal and business challenges than most. In this conversation he talks about living with cystic fibrosis (or '65 roses', as children often put it), his extraordinary journey as an entrepreneur, and the power of writing as a way of sense-making personally and professionally.  Inspiring, challenging, and, as you'd expect from the Trunki Daddy, huge fun. 

'Writing the book was one of the hardest things I've ever done in my life... There's no quick fix. Everybody finds it hard. What differentiates people who have written books from those that haven't is the ones who wrote the books dealt with the fact that it was really hard.' Gemma Milne has come at hype from all sides in a career spanning advertising, sales, science journalism and investment, so she's well qualified to dissect it and help us understand what's really going on under the attention-grabbing headlines that bombard us every day.  But that doesn't mean it's easy.  In this frank and funny conversation she shares her frustration with the writing process and the revelation, on a flight to Austin, Texas, that transformed everything. 

Tom Cheesewright spends his life gazing into the future to help businesses identify and respond to trends and technology, but his advice for writers is rooted in the here and now. A fascinating conversation taking in principles for business survival in a fast-changing world along with super-practical tips for writing - and editing - effectively.  Plus a great tip for writers that is much more fun than most! 

'Ask yourself continually: is this boring me?... Because if you're bored writing it, there is no chance that anybody is going to want to read it.' Former Enterprise Editor of the Sunday Times, Rachel Bridge cheerfully admits that she has the classic journalistic characteristics: a short attention span and incurable curiosity. Both, it turns out, are useful when it comes to writing readable business books.  Fast, funny and fearless, this is a masterclass in cutting through the 'showy-off wibble' (technical journalistic term) and delivering the goods.   

One of the great privileges of hosting this podcast is the way that so many extraordinary business book authors are willing to share the vulnerable stuff - especially the fear and uncertainty around writing - with me, I hope you find it helpful too.  In this week's episode, I look back over the last few weeks and draw together examples of authors demonstrating 'whole self' writing: bringing their flaws, anxieties, strengths, superpowers, and unique ways of Getting Stuff Done to the work of writing a book. When you bring your whole self to the job, you write the book that only you can write, and the one that will most profoundly change your life.  In this week's Best Bits episode:  Chris Wilson on transforming the harshest of backgrounds and the bleakest of situations through the power of reading and writing; Bryony Thomas on the unflinching reality of just how hard this writing lark is; Patrick Dunne on turning dyslexia into a non-linear superpower; Elsbeth Johnson on the crisis of confidence for an author without a social media platform;  Julia Hobsbawm on how even professional writers can worry about tackling a book;  Lucinda Carney on the struggle to find your distinctive voice;  Greg Orme on being comfortable with the messiness of writing;  David Mansfield on living by curiosity and collecting stories; Anne Taylor on writing the book you most need yourself.  It's an exploration of the whole journey of writing, from idea through mess and uncertainty into clarity, and it's a whole-self process.