It’s here. Winning Conversations: How to turn red tape into blue ribbon. Plenty of blood, sweat but not an ounce of tears has gone into my second book. I loved writing it. I love the core message intertwined through it. You should and most definitely can show the revenue producers, the policy makers, the senior leaders that your advice is not red tape, it is in fact blue ribbon.

From my long history in the risk profession, I know how hard it is to change perceptions. Back in the early noughties when I was consulting to Australian government departments for the Department of Finance I would be introduced to staff in a meeting as a risk consultant. The looks on their faces was instant. They looked at me like I was Dracula, “He has come to suck my blood.”

Over the last two decades I learned how to change perceptions, to shift minds from “hell no” to “I didn’t realise it was about that” to “We’ve never had a conversation like that before”. Yes it was a winning conversation for me but for them it was cathartic. They sat down and in a structured way thought about what they wanted to achieve, how they were going about it and how they needed to change if they were going to be successful. Who wouldn’t want to do that every now and then?

No matter your role, no matter your audience, you come with baggage. You are perceived as a bean counter from finance, a tree hugger from HR, a colour-ineror from marketing a seagull from head office (you fly in $#!t all over the place and leave) and “they” are busy. Everyone wants a piece of their time and time is precious.

In fact, it takes about eight hours of someone’s time, yours and fellow team members, to put together 15 minutes of advice to a senior executive. Those 15 minutes simply can’t be wasted.

If you want to have more winning conversations – read my book. The first 10 to people to say “Yes please” will receive a copy – gratis. Don’t forget the please. My kids would be upset if I didn’t stay on message!