"There's a lot more that hasn't been said. A lot of the book is about voice and not leaving things unsaid. And I sometimes realise that I don't use my voice as much as I could. I can retreat from things. In a way, that's what writing the book does. It brings things to the surface that wouldn't otherwise come through. I don't think that's done. I just think there's a lot of creativity still waiting to emerge." Susan

This is a solo episode to mark 2 years since the publication of Leading Beyond the Numbers. It begins with a poem written on a the side of the street in London and moves through what it has been like to live alongside a book in the world.

I explore what it means to uncover or recover our dreams, and what stands between us and acknowledging them. Tim Gallwey's formula: Performance = Potential – Interference surfaces alongside a mishearing that reframed interfere as inner fear: the way our most protective thoughts can be the most cleverly disguised.

I cover the shortlisting party I nearly talked myself out of attending and a moment afterwards, a hug from a fellow author who hadn't made the shortlist, that turned out to matter most.

And underneath all of it: outsourcing worth to outcomes, mistaking thinking for reality and what changes when we start listening to what's actually here. Are you Listening?

Susan is a facilitator, coach, writer and speaker and the host of Life Beyond the Numbers. Her work sits at the intersection of leadership, emotional intelligence and the human experience of work, helping people see more clearly, speak more honestly and move forward in a more grounded way. Her book Leading Beyond the Numbers, published in May 2024, draws on her work, her research and the conversations that shaped this podcast. It won Highly Commended in the Leadership Category at the 2025 Business Book Awards.

Connect with Susan:
On LinkedIn

Through her website: Beyond the Numbers

Read Leading Beyond the Numbers: How accounting for emotions tips the balance at work

Follow her writing on Substack: The Whole Equation

Resources Mentioned:
The Inner Game of Tennis by Tim Gallwey

Practical Inspiration Publishing

Business Book Awards

David Whyte

Rob Lawrence

Season of Blood by Fergal Keane