Binding: Paperback
Date Published: 24 Apr 2026
What if the secret to becoming a more effective leader wasn’t about working harder, but about leading from Who you are?
In Put Who First: A Human-Centred Guide to Leading Yourself and Others, leadership expert and executive coach Mary Ann McGowan distils over 30 years of global experience into a practical, inspiring guide for modern leaders. At its heart is a simple yet profound truth: when you Put Who First— yourself, your team, and your relationships — you unlock greater clarity, resilience, and results.
This isn’t another book of quick fixes or rigid models. Instead, it invites you to pause, reflect, and discover a wiser way of leading in a world that often pushes us toward speed, certainty, and control.
You’ll learn how to:
Cultivate self-awareness and emotional intelligence to lead from the inside out
Design your life and leadership with vision, values, and purpose
Change your relationship with time to move from busyness to intentionality
Build clear agreements that prevent misunderstandings and foster accountability
Engage in three core leadership conversations. Clear Agreements, Thinking Conversations, and Courageous Conversations, that deepen trust, unlock potential, and strengthen relationships
Navigate conflict, feedback, and difficult conversations while staying human and connected
Recognise and step out of unhelpful patterns such as the Drama Triangle or “below the line” thinking
Drawing on neuroscience, psychology, and decades of leadership practice, McGowan makes complex ideas simple, practical, and deeply human. With stories, reflective prompts, and exercises, you’ll find yourself not just learning about leadership but transforming how you live and work.