‘It’s not a presentation or a business card. It’s a conversation.’

This Best Bits episode is a love letter to intentional conversations – the ones that unlock insight, build cohesion, shape identity and, ultimately, bring books into the world. As I looked back over the last few episodes, what stood out was how often my guests spoke about dialogue in all its forms – with ourselves, with each other,and with our readers – as the real work of writing, leading and changing the world.

Hear from:

• Sarah Rozenthuler on the life-changing magic of energising, intentional dialogue;

• Claire Pedrick on the space between words and the attentiveness behind great coaching – and writing;

• Wendy Smith on paradox as a creative lens for thinking, leading, and writing;

• John Dore on the 'glue' that binds people together around ideas;

• Marissa Eigenbrood on publicity as a bridge into new conversations with new audiences;

• Petra Molthan-Hill on making complex ideas accessible and immediately useful;

• David Oxley and Helmut Schuster on creating a character to talk to an audience that's had enough of being talked at;

• Alison Jones (hello!) on how AI forces us to be more intentional than ever about the conversations we’re having – and who we’re having them with – as authors, publishers, and humans.

If you’re writing a business book, or even just thinking about it, this episode is packed with insights to get you talking.

'I didn't just want to do a sort of 'me-too' series just for the sake of it. I wanted to have a series concept that I could really get excited about and which would stand out in quite a crowded marketplace as offering something different.'

This week, we're flipping the script a bit. Normally, I'd be bringing you an engaging conversation with a business book author, but this week we're exploring an origin story—one that gives you an insight into the inner workings of publishing as an industry and an individual publisher's mind.

A successful book series is the closest thing we have to magic in publishing magic. But how do you go about finding the right concept in a crowded marketplace? Here's how our new 6-Minute Smarts series came about, from a series of conversations at Frankfurt to a 30,000-foot exploratory writing sprint to launch. 

Whether you're a reader, an aspiring author, or simply curious about the publishing world, this episode offers insights and inspiration that you won't want to miss.

' We've invented a new genre, at least that's very modestly what we would like to believe. We're calling it Professional Advice Narrative Tales, and we'll leave you to figure out that acronym.'

For the new generation entering the workplace, reading a traditional business book has all the appeal of a colonoscopy. So longtime colleagues and collaborators Dr David Oxley and Dr Helmut Schuster realized that if they were to get across their insights and advice, the only way was through storytelling.

The result? The series of Shey Sinope books, which explore the complexities, conundrums and constraints young professionals face as they navigate the modern workplace in a lighthearted, readable, engaging way. It's a fresh perspective that speaks directly to the experience of embarking on a profession career; the absurdities and challenges, but also the profound need for meaning and fulfilment.

But we all know that writing a standard business book is hard enough - how on earth do you go about writing fiction collaboratively? Find out here.

'[Olympia's] gorgeous vaulted glass roof feels kind of like a metaphor for the fair itself. Rooted in history, but always looking upwards and outwards.'

Something a bit different today: join me for a deep dive into a publisher's experience of London Book Fair 2025. I have been to a LOT of book fairs, but this one was a little different. I'm exploring the issues faced by publishers of all sizes today, navigating challenges such as AI’s disruptive potential to the demands of new EU regulations and the current geopolitical chaos, and reflecting on the opportunities they present.

Whether you’re in the business or simply curious about the world of books, this episode is a behind-the-scenes look at an industry perpetually on the brink of transformation as well as a very personal reflection on how it feels to be part of it.

 'This is all a web that's woven together, and how it all works is really important. You can't just do one piece of it. And a great partner is someone who understands that this is a marathon, not a sprint.'

You think writing a book is hard? Well, ok, yes it is, but it comes as a nasty shock for most authors to realize that writing the damn thing isn't enough - then they have to promote it. Luckily, there are people out there who do this really, really well. And even more luckily, one of them is about to give you a book publicity masterclass. 

Marissa Eigenbrood, President at Smith Publicity, specialises in the art of connection, matching the right authors to the right platforms, so the right readers can find the right books. While marketing is great for creating a buzz at launch, publicity helps establish enduring credibility. Marketing directly engages your readers; publicity harnesses the power of established media to supercharge your authority and reach. 

The good news is that there's a wealth of opportunities out there. The even better news is that you don't just get one chance to shine; long after publication day, savvy publicity means you can continue to use your book to build an enduring professional presence.

Here's to the long game.

 'When I first started, people were like, "Don't say the word paradox... don't say it because they won't get it." And now people are like, "Oh my goodness, I need this."' 

When it's a case of scarce resources - as it always seems to be, right? - our default thinking is Either/Or. Either I spend time on this project, or I prioritise my family. Either I work on delivering today's priorities, or I focus on planning for tomorrow. 

But Professor Wendy Smith would like you to consider a different way of thinking: Both/And. Life is essentially paradoxical, and she argues that the best way to navigate all the competing demands on our time successfully is to understand their interdependence. In an increasingly complex world, navigating tensions creatively can lead to better, more inclusive solutions - and this applies to personal life just as much as professional life.

She also shares the challenges of writing for a natural speaker and extrovert, the hacks she's developed for herself, and why books are 'rocky splashy'. (If you were worried that all this research-based, insightful stuff was going to be terribly academic, I hope you're now reassured.)

' I really like to read other people's ideas and then add my own ideas... you start with the brainstorming together and say, so what could be in here?'

Petra Molthan-Hill is a professor of Sustainable Management and Education for Sustainable Development at Nottingham Business School, and a prolific academic writer. But when it came to The Handbook of Carbon Management - which was named Change & Sustainability Book of the Year at the Business Book Awards 2024 - she knew she wanted to take a different approach.

She knew this had to be a practical book for anyone, at any level of the organization, and in any size of organization, wanting to make more sustainable decisions. It had to contain not just evidence-based theories, but pragmatic, easy-to-implement solutions grounded in research and real-world impact. And it needed to get out there quickly and start making a difference, because this is a crisis that demands a response and there is literally no time to lose. 

So Petra turned to a trusted group of her peers, and between them they created something that is more than the sum of its parts. 

In this week's episode Petra tells me about their collaborative, creative writing process, and the way in which reading and writing more generally can provide some of the most satisfying conversations you'll ever have, even when there's noone else in the room.  

'I have learned to have a different relationship with resistance... when we're actually really on track with things, resistance comes up.'

Sarah Rozenthuler is no stranger to the art of conversation at work. With over two decades of experience as a business psychologist, she's seen both how energizing high-quality conversation can be, and also how most people, most of the time, would do almost anything to avoid difficult topics (or difficult people). 

Her latest book, Now We're Talking, addresses the deep-rooted reasons for this - the fear of our own and the other person's emotions, the challenge to our fragile self-image, the risk of the bad outcome, and more - and also the transformative power of leaning into the resistance and engaging with each other more effectively.

And we discover along the way that sitting down to write a book involves much of the same fear and resistance. Sarah's own journey as a writer, the false starts and the slow burn, is as relatable as it is inspiring. So here's a nudge to lean into the discomfort - in writing, in conversation and in life - because it's a sign that we're doing the work that matters. 

'How do you make a strategy a story? The best leaders and the best communicators do that. They turn something that's functional and rational into something that's a story.'

John Dore, head of London Business School's Senior Executive Program and founder of Wave Your Arms, wants you to reimagine your idea of 'glue': as the magic ingredient that holds organizations together. Creating glue, he argues, is a core leadership capability: building real connection, delivering not just strategies but stories that resonate, that are galvanizing and engaging. 

Storytelling is a key ingredient in glue, and as you might expect from someone with a side hustle in screenwriting, John is a genius at telling stories. You can see it in his book, Glue: Transforming leadership in a hybrid world, which was the winner of the 2024 Business Books Award Leadership Category. 

In this week's conversation, we get stuck in to the idea of glue in organizations, and also how as a writer you can create a different kind of glue, the kind that keeps a reader engaged with your book, and makes your ideas stick in their minds. 

If you know anything at all about coaching, you know that it's all about asking questions, right? Well, yes, and also: that's not the full story. 

Claire Pedrick and Lucia Baldelli sat down together to write a book on how to move from 'really good' to 'even better' coach, but they quickly realised that mastery is less about what the coach does or says, and much more about how they are in the coaching conversation. It's about noticing and responding, being the person that can facilitate the coachee's own work, being a little less certain, being a little more human, in fact. 

And that approach spills into Claire's approach to writing, too: it's about noticing, iterating, being curious, and being unafraid to let the ideas evolve and develop. Which is how The Human Behind the Coach came about, and why it was named Specialist Business Book of the Year at the Business Book Awards. 

(Although I don't THINK she uses scissors quite so regularly in her coaching work as she does in her writing process...)

If you care about coaching, writing or thinking - or just about being human in a world that's increasingly inhuman - make tea, sit down, listen up.