What inspired you to write this book?

I’ve always wanted to write a book. When I was younger, that looked more like a novel. As my career went on, I felt drawn to writing a business book. After growing increasingly frustrated at work, I left my career of 20 years to undertake an MSc in Organisational Behaviour. My MSc research inspired the book as it is today.

Who needs this book?

Aoife circa 2011 could really use a book like this! I mention in the introduction that I wrote the book I wish I had had as a leader and the book I wish *my* leaders had had. It’s for leaders who care about their people and still have targets to reach - they want to optimise performance without burning their team out.

Which was the hardest chapter to write?

Interestingly I found the Capabilities section quite difficult to write - it was the one I was most looking forward to and most interested in. But when it came to getting the words on paper, I really struggled. Perhaps it was my perfectionist coming out, or wanting to ensure I had every angle covered.

What did you leave out of the book?

There was so much more I could have said! Thankfully, I tended to cut sections out as I went, so I never reached the stage of having far too many words. But I did still end up with around 20,000 words in my ‘SPARE’ file. I cut things that didn’t add much, and information people could easily get elsewhere, like lists of leaders and concepts that were more opinion than research based. I’m currently thinking of creative ways to share that additional content. There were also personal stories I would have liked to share, but I was wary of readers deducing the people or the companies concerned.

Have you discovered anything new about yourself? 

I’ve learned so much during this process. When I started writing, I was part of a sprint and reached 27,000 words in around 2 months. Then I took a break at Christmas and found it incredibly hard to get back into writing. Doing a little bit every day rather than trying to tackle it all at once was my way back in. 

My tolerance for anything superficial has decreased now I know the depth I can go to - there are no quick wins or easy fixes with this work, it will take time but it’s worth it.

Other things I already knew about myself became more pronounced; things like imposter syndrome, trying to create the ‘perfect’ book, overworking and giving my all; sometimes at the expense of relationships and health.

What advice would you give to first time authors starting out?

I created the structure before writing a word, and that really helped. Some of the subsections changed or were moved to different chapters. But the structure broadly stayed the same.

When I started writing, I just let the words flow. It was hard not to catch myself and correct as I went along, but it’s important that to get the words out there and create a ‘crappy first draft’.

Also, consistency is key - make writing a habit you do every day rather than trying to churn out thousands of words at a time.

When do you write best?

I usually write best in the morning, but I discovered I can write well in the evening if in a state of flow and not too tired.

Music or silence when writing? If music, what have you listened to most?

Silence for me. But this question has inspired me to try listening to music for my next book! Probably relaxing classical music, or some upbeat instrumental 2000’s Trance music.

Anything else that gets your creative juices going? A scented candle/nice view/sandwich filling? 

Rumour has it that one of my editors loves peanut butter sandwiches while he’s writing. Though I couldn’t possibly say who… I’m usually inspired when I’m not writing or trying to be creative, and I’m inspired by others all the time, whether through podcasts, books, TV shows, or conversations I have… they all spark ideas, even if not directly related.

What books are on your bedside table/are you listening to?

I read over 65 books in 2025, so I always have a few books on the go - audio, ebooks and physical books. I’ve just finished the Let Them theory by Mel Robbins on ebook, which I loved. I’m listening to a book called Boundaries (something I can always learn about and improve on) by Jennie Miller and Victoria Lambert. My current physical book is a Lee Child/Jack Reacher book.