From Mercenaries to Missionaries by Martin Murphy

Marathon runner’s will be familiar with the concept of “hitting the wall” which happens when all their energy stores have been completely emptied leaving both, mind and body wanting to quit. Martin Murphy uses this as a metaphor to describe business owners who reach a stage in their business lifecycle which seems impossible to move beyond, he calls this the “leader wall”.

If the leader wall sounds like something you would prefer to avoid then you need to treat building a business like running a marathon and I believe Mercenaries to Missionaries will become your trusted training guide through the process, one that will be reached for regularly.

Martin Murphy, is an international coach and trainer specialising in leadership, teamwork and personal development. Much of what Murphy has learnt about leadership has come from his experiences as a former Special Forces soldier.

Mercenaries to Missionaries is his latest publication and has clearly been written with business owners and senior leaders in mind. There is a clear focus on high performing teams, how to build them, how to develop them and how to lead them. The advantages of establishing high performing teams in business becomes clear through the book. For me, the key take home point is that high performing teams are agile, they can adapt quickly to change, and we need agility in business now more than ever.

Throughout the book Murphy presents his new methodology in a clear and convincing way. The content is easily digestible and thought provoking throughout. With practical strategies and exercises along the way, the reader will be personally challenged and I expect will make changes that create real impact in the way they run and grow their business as a result of reading this book.

If you are hungry to learn more about collaborative working, empowerment of both yourself as a leader and your workforce then this book should move to the top of your book pile.

Reviewed by Siobhan Watson

Siobhan Watson commissioned from the world renowned, Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 2010 and went on to spend six years serving in the Royal Logistic Corps including an operational tour of Afghanistan in 2012. Now she is the North Wales based Mortgage and Protection Adviser for Mainly Money Matters, an independent and whole of market mortgage advice firm specialising in residential, buy to let and holiday let mortgages.”