A book that isn’t meant to sit on a shelf: A conversation with John Bessey and Katy Sweetman

A behind-the-scenes conversation with John Bessey and Katy Sweetman in the lead-up to the first print run of Rituals of Impact.

An abridged transcript of upcoming video interview, recorded November, 2025.

 

Q (Simon): I’ve got the printer’s proof of Rituals of Impact here – it’s not even bound yet. So let’s start at the beginning. John, this was your original concept. What is this book, and why this book, now?

John: Being a leader has become harder and harder. There’s so much noise, so much expectation. People struggle with imposter syndrome, with the pressure to be excellent at everything. What I wanted to do was help people simplify – to focus on the things that matter most.

Rather than worrying about being great at everything, you can ask: What are the two or three things that really matter to me?

If you then focus on those things and hone them into rituals, you can drive great performance. You don’t have to be the full job description. You just have to be excellent at some things, and do them consistently, and that’s enough.

 

Q: Katy, where do you come into this?

Katy: John and I have talked about business books for years and compared notes on what works and what doesn’t. We’ve both absorbed lots of influences along the way. But when we really started working on this, about two and a half years ago, my “why” became very clear.

I didn’t want this to be another book that sits on a shelf. I wanted it to be something people could use – almost like a gift. I have lots of books, but how many do I actually go back to?

This felt different. It’s a toolkit as much as a book.

Many years ago, I wrote and published a novel. This time around was a completely different experience – and it couldn’t be a more different kind of book!

With Rituals, what excites me isn’t just that the book exists; it’s now getting to find out how people will use it and make it their own.

 

Q: Was it always going to be a book? Or did it start as something else?

John: Initially, it could have gone in a few directions – consulting, frameworks, or something else entirely. But the breadth of what it covered – personal wellbeing, people, strategy and customer connection – made a book format feel right. A book gave it the space it needed.

But I also knew I couldn’t do it alone. I needed someone who could help bring it to life properly – and that’s where Katy came in.

Katy: We’ve worked together in lots of contexts – as colleagues, clients, and now as collaborators – and we’ve always enjoyed throwing ideas around and seeing what we could make of them.

This was probably John’s wildest idea yet, but it grew naturally out of how we’d already been working together over the years.

 

Q: You’ve both mentioned that this is more than a book. Katy, can you talk about what else it is?

Katy: The book is at the centre of it, but there’s also a whole digital ecosystem surrounding it. The book introduces the four dimensions – Personal, People, Strategy and Customer Connection – and it walks through examples and exercises that readers can relate to, but it’s really about giving people a framework they can take and use in their own way.

One thing I struggled with during the process was imposter syndrome. To write this kind of book, you think you have to be great at everything. But actually, this feels like the beginning of a journey. Some parts of the book were confronting for me – especially the personal section around health.

At one point I was editing while lying on the hallway floor with a bad back, thinking, I’m not the person to be involved in this.

But that’s exactly the point. It’s about getting better, honing over time. The book, the toolkit, the digital content – all of it is designed to evolve, to be taken and adapted to meet someone’s individual needs, wherever they are in their life right now, and whatever those needs may be.

 

Q: So, in some sense it’s a living document?

John: Yes. The book sets out rituals that I’ve honed over 20–30 years, but it’s not prescriptive. It’s saying: Build your own Rituals. What matters is committing to the two or three things that are critical to you, turning them into Rituals of Impact, and improving them over time.

 

Q: You didn’t invent the word “ritual,” but it’s central here. Why that word?

John: I was looking for a word that conveyed long-term commitment and respect. Something that acknowledges the weight of actions done consistently over time – not just habits, but practices that drive meaningful change. “Ritual” felt right. It carries seriousness and intention.

 

Q: The subtitle talks about transforming your business and life. How did the life aspect come in?

John: Early in my career, work was everything. I wanted to be CEO. I worked constantly. When I had children, I realised something was badly out of balance. By the time my second child arrived, it all fell apart.

What saved me was realising that if I did two or three things really well at work, I could get 80% of the results – and that was enough. That freed up time and energy for the rest of my life. The book reflects that shift.

 

Q: Katy, the book references a lot of other thinkers. That’s part of the toolkit too, isn’t it?

Katy: Absolutely. We reference people like Jim Collins, Brené Brown, James Clear – all these influences and ideas have lived with us for years. Good to Great was hugely influential, especially the Hedgehog Concept.

For me, working in communications and storytelling, the challenge is always embodiment. Ideas don’t matter unless people can relate to them, make them their own, and live them.

That’s why this became more than a linear book – we wanted it to be something you can enter anywhere, use however you need.

 

Q: John, did you always want to write a book?

John: Yes, though it felt unlikely early on. I left school early and struggled with writing. This was partly about proving to myself that I could do it. But more than that, I wanted to summarise what I’d learned – and if it helps even a handful of people be better leaders or better parents, that’s enough.

 

Q: Through writing the book did you change your own habits?

John: Completely. I love exercise, but during the book I made a rule: no exercise until the writing was done. Writing became the ritual. I’d write, think, talk things through, send it to Katy, and we’d iterate.

Over two and a half years, we took turns carrying it. Sometimes I was deep in it for months; sometimes Katy was. That rhythm became part of the process.

 

Q: Katy, what was it like receiving John’s drafts and shaping them?

Katy: I think of this kind of writing like sculpture. You start with a huge block and chip away over time.

It’s about mind-melding – and giving the story the space and time to find its right form. And it’s about creating an experience, not just words. It’s slow, sometimes confronting, and always collaborative.

We weren’t always sure what we were creating – and as time went on it became illustrated, experiential, more of a world than we initially imagined.

 

Q: The book feels very readable, multi-dimensional – something you can dip into.

John: That was intentional. You don’t have to read it cover to cover. You meet yourself where you are. If you’re struggling with health, start there. If it’s customers or leadership teams, go there.

 

Q: If this book had existed earlier, when would it have personally helped you most?

John: When I first became a manager, in my mid-20s. The format and the thinking would have helped enormously.

Katy: For me, it would probably be now that I have more space to reflect on how to live more intentionally. Earlier in my career, I wouldn’t have had the headspace.

 

Q: Looking ahead, what do you hope this opens up?

John: Conversations. If it leads to deeper conversations about how people work, live, and lead, that’s success for me.

Katy: For me it’s play and exploration. The digital ecosystem lets us keep iterating, learning, and responding. I don’t know where it will go – and that’s exciting.

 

Q: Final thoughts?

John: We hope people get value from it, and we’d love to hear how they use it.

Katy: And we hope it leads people to explore the thinkers and ideas that shaped it – and to create their own Rituals.