📚 Good talks, deep connections

Greetings from the Atacama desert in Chile!

Short update from us this week as Tristan and Fiona are off on a far flung adventure exploring the deserts, mountains and of course, the wine regions, of Chile and Argentina!

Fear not - David Brooks’ How to Know a Person remains our faithful companion for the long bus rides across the Andes - though reading (and breathing) do become a challenge at 5,000m above sea level.

We hope you are continuing to enjoy the book as much as we are and we look forward to joining you in a few weeks time for our end of month book club call to discuss all things: How to Know a Person. If you’ve not yet registered to attend - don’t forget to do so - instructions on how to do that are to be found below!

Special Announcement: Creator and author Amanda Goetz will be joining the second half of this month’s book club call to talk about her upcoming first book: Toxic Grit. Even if you’ve not read this one (it was a an optional bonus read this month) do join us as this will be a unique insight into the process behind writing, publishing and marketing a first time book!

We’re now about halfway through How to Know a Person and the book continues to challenge the way we think about connection. Brooks doesn’t just talk about big life-changing conversations, he shows us how the smallest choices in how we listen, respond, and approach others can make all the difference. Here are three new highlights that stood out to us this week:

Many of our misunderstandings come from different ways of sharing. Some people lean on stories, others focus on facts, and some go straight to advice. Spotting these differences can help us adapt and connect more effectively.

Curiosity isn’t just about asking more questions. It’s a posture of genuine interest, approaching every person with the thought: “What can I learn from you?” That shift can transform ordinary exchanges into opportunities for insight and trust.

We don’t need deep, hours-long conversations to truly know someone. Everyday interactions (e.g. a quick chat in passing, a smile, a thoughtful follow-up) all add up. When treated with care, these little moments weave stronger relationships.

As we head into the final stretch of How to Know a Person, Brooks shifts from individual connection to something bigger: how we can build families, teams, and communities where people consistently feel seen. It’s about taking the skills we’ve learned (illumination, curiosity, listening) and weaving them into the culture around us.

Stick with us for the last section so you don’t miss the practical tools and inspiring stories that show how small actions can create a ripple effect of connection. This is where the book really starts to come alive.

If this month’s read has got you thinking deeply about how we connect with others, here are a few extra gems to dig into. They’re not homework, just good companions to the themes of How to Know a Person:

We’re building an incredible community over on our Bad Ass Bookshelf Discord channel where over 110 of you have joined in the fun (it’s free BTW).

Here are some of the chats we’ve been having:

We're so excited to host our next Bad Ass Bookshelf bookclub call to discuss How to Know a Person at the end of September! Call details below:

Date: Monday 29th September
Time: 17:00 GMT (12:00 EST / 09:00 PST)

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