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It was early 2018 in London, I was on garden leave, fresh out of an 18-year corporate career. Six months earlier I said, “Enough is enough” after my bully demoted me publicly in the boardroom. After four years of being bullied, I was burnt out, feeling empty and without purpose.
At first, I thought I was alone in my experience, but this quickly changed when conversations with capable, high-performing corporate execs revealed that everyone had a relatable story. Everyone I spoke to crossed paths with a bully at some point.
This made me angry, and I decided to shine a spotlight on workplace bullying: a silent epidemic. ROAR! How to Tame the Bully Inside and Out was published in England in December 2019. The ROAR! blueprint helps you reignite your purpose, reclaim your power, and find the courage to speak up with the four-step ROAR (Recognise, Observe, Assert, Redirect) process. It helps you face the difficult conversations with yourself and others.
Energy is our greatest currency, and to make our dreams come true we have to take bold, brave, messy, imperfect action.
I didn’t plan to write more books, but in 2021, my coach gave me three words: More, Roar, Soar. A seed was planted. Two years later, Heinie and I returned to South Africa after 18 years in England, with our two teenage sons in tow. I knew I wanted to capture this new chapter in a second book.
In April 2023 I asked my cousin Christiaan in a WhatsApp voice note to create the cover for More. He replied with a question: “I’m assuming you’re spelling ‘more’ M-O-A-R, exclamation mark?” Genius.
The cover existed long before the book did. Let’s just say, life happened. In addition to a country move, settling the boys and continued work commitments, we also built our barn-style home on a river property in Jamestown, in the Cape Winelands, a dream come true. In December 2023, we finally moved into our new home. What should have been one of the happiest days of my life, remains a blur. I was shattered.
I realised that I could no longer blame a bully or external conditions for my burnout. I was the only factor. I knew I had to find a new way, and this new way became the heart of MOAR! How to Play to Win Without Burning Out.
The premise of MOAR! is that you’re meant for more, and you’re already more than enough. Energy is our greatest currency, and to make our dreams come true we have to take bold, brave, messy, imperfect action. This requires raising your frequency on both sides: meant for more, and more than enough. So this book is your invitation to do more and be more. If you don’t, burnout will be inevitable.
ROAR! and MOAR! are the first two books in a trilogy. SOAR! will complete it. But I have to live that curriculum first.
Your mess becomes your message.
No more playing small. Own your magic. Your message matters.
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