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Let me tell you something that changed my relationship with learning.
I used to feel guilty about not reading enough. Books piled up on my desk, good intentions gathering dust alongside them. Between a demanding consulting career, a busy personal life, and the general pace of working in UK insurance and project delivery – sitting down with a book felt like a luxury I rarely had.
Then I discovered audiobooks. And everything changed.
My commute became a classroom. My gym sessions became leadership seminars. My evening walks became some of the most intellectually stimulating parts of my week.
If you have a commute, even a short one, you have enough time to finish a book every single week. These five will make that time genuinely transformative.
1. Extreme Ownership – Jocko Willink & Leif Babin
Commute time to finish: 3 to 4 days
Former US Navy SEALs Jocko Willink and Leif Babin wrote this book based on their combat experience in Iraq and somehow managed to produce the most powerful leadership book I have ever listened to.
The central principle is uncomfortably simple: as a leader, everything is your responsibility. Every failure, every miscommunication, every missed deadline. No excuses. No blame. Just ownership.
For project managers and consultants working in complex UK organisations, where finger pointing and blame culture can derail even the best programmes, this book is a cold shower of accountability. I have listened to it twice and taken something different from it each time.
The narration by Willink himself is outstanding. His calm, measured delivery makes the lessons land even harder.
Get Extreme Ownership on Amazon UK
Listen on Audible UK
2. Leaders Eat Last – Simon Sinek
Commute time to finish: 4 to 5 days
Simon Sinek asks one of the most important questions in leadership: why do some teams pull together under pressure while others fall apart?
His answer, backed by neuroscience and real world examples, is that the best leaders create environments where people feel safe, valued, and willing to go above and beyond. Not through perks or pay rises, but through genuine human connection and trust.
For anyone managing teams in the UK, whether in insurance transformation, consulting, or PMO delivery, this book reframes what it actually means to lead. It is not about authority. It is about service.
Sinek narrates this himself and his passion for the subject is infectious from the very first chapter.
Get Leaders Eat Last on Amazon UK
Listen on Audible UK
3. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People – Stephen Covey
Commute time to finish: 5 to 6 days
This is the one that started it all for me.
Stephen Covey’s masterwork has sold over 40 million copies worldwide and it remains as relevant today as the day it was written. The seven habits, from being proactive to seeking first to understand, are not motivational fluff. They are a deeply practical framework for how to live and lead with intention.
What strikes me every time I revisit this book is how profoundly it applies to project management. Habit 2 – Begin With the End in Mind is essentially the entire premise of project initiation done well. Habit 5 – Seek First to Understand is the foundation of every great stakeholder conversation.
If you have only ever read this in print, listen to it. The audiobook brings a warmth and depth to the material that the page alone cannot capture.
Get The 7 Habits on Amazon UK
Listen on Audible UK
4. Dare to Lead – Brené Brown
Commute time to finish: 4 to 5 days
Brené Brown spent two decades researching courage, vulnerability, and leadership. This book is the distilled wisdom of all of it and it will challenge every assumption you have ever held about what strong leadership looks like.
Her core argument is that the leaders who build the most resilient, high performing teams are not the ones who project invulnerability and certainty. They are the ones who are willing to be honest about uncertainty, to have difficult conversations, and to show up as human beings rather than just authority figures.
For UK consulting and insurance professionals navigating complex change programmes, where ambiguity is constant and pressure is high, this book is essential reading. Or listening.
Brené narrates this herself and her warmth, humour, and authenticity make every chapter feel like a conversation rather than a lecture.
Get Dare to Lead on Amazon UK
Listen on Audible UK
5. Good to Great – Jim Collins
Commute time to finish: 5 to 6 days
Jim Collins and his research team spent five years studying companies that made the leap from good performance to truly exceptional, sustained results. What they found will surprise you.
The leaders of the most successful companies were not the loudest, most charismatic, or most celebrated figures in their industries. They were quietly determined, deeply humble, and obsessively focused on getting the right people in the right roles before worrying about strategy.
For project professionals working within large UK organisations – insurers, consultancies, financial services firms, the lessons in this book translate directly to programme delivery, team building, and organisational change. The concept of the Hedgehog Principle alone is worth the entire listen.
Get Good to Great on Amazon UK
Listen on Audible UK
The Gnosis Takeaway
Your commute is not dead time. It is learning time.!
Five books. Roughly three weeks of commuting. And a completely different perspective on what it means to lead, deliver, and grow as a professional.
Start with whichever title resonates most and if you are not already on Audible, there has never been a better time to start:
Try Audible UK Free — Your First Book is On Them
Happy listening. And happy commuting. 🎧
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase through them, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Views are my own and not those of my employer. I only recommend books and resources I genuinely believe in.
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