Moments - Leadership when it matters most by Zoë Routh
Moments: Leadership When It Matters Most is your roadmap for leadership when the stakes are high and every interaction counts. Leadership coach Zoë Routh shows that your life is built out of moments and the quality of your leadership depends on how you show up in them. Through a mix of stories, exercises and frameworks she explains why choices made in pivotal instants tip the scales towards success or regret. You’ll learn to recognise three types of personal moments – bridging moments, crucible moments and rock‑bottom lows – and how to harness your inner voice to move through them. Routh also tackles ethical dilemmas when all options seem bad, and equips you with Emotional Aikido and rules of engagement to stay centred during high‑stakes conversations. Underpinning everything is the Influence model of Presence, Perspective and Power, guiding you to develop perception, resolve and impact. Whether you need to speak up, align your actions with your values, or navigate conflict gracefully, this book coaches you to show up fully and build resilience, courage and connection in the moments that matter. It combines leadership insights with actionable exercises, making it ideal for executives, managers seeking to lead with integrity and influence today.
Moments: Leadership When it Matters Most
Master the Moments That Matter and Lead When It Counts
Your life is made up of moments—how you show up in them defines your legacy.
Zoë Routh’s Moments: Leadership When It Matters Most is a guide to mastering the fleeting encounters that make or break relationships, reputations and results. Drawing on her coaching experience and leadership frameworks, she shows that quality of life depends on the quality of our moments and that the choices we make in those pivotal instants tip the scales of success.
Routh introduces the Seen–Heard–Valued and Influence models to help readers find their voice and build Presence, Perspective and Power—the three leadership super‑powers. She explains how to face fear, speak the truth and be seen when it matters most. Through stories and exercises she guides you through managing rock‑bottom lows, ethical dilemmas and high‑stakes conversations, turning difficult moments into defining breakthroughs.
“A brilliant read written with heart. This book is so applicable to life, business and fostering organisational change and resilience.” – Renee Giarusso, Best‑selling author books.apple.com
Get Your Copy Now:
ALSO AVAILABLE AT THESE RETAILERS
Why You Need Moments
You stay silent when it counts. Many leaders withhold their voice due to fear of rejection or conflict. Routh identifies four common personas—the Pleaser, the Wounded, the Rationalist and the Apathetic—who shy away from speaking up, costing them influence and integrity.
Your actions don’t match your values. A gap between aspirational values and lived behaviour leaves leaders feeling out of integrity. This misalignment fuels guilt and diminishes impact.
You’re unprepared for personal crises. Bridging, crucible and rock‑bottom moments test who you are and force you to choose courage or collapse.
Ethical dilemmas paralyse you. Defining moments occur when all options feel wrong and values collide; without tools, leaders freeze or compromise their integrity.
Tough conversations trigger you. In the heat of the moment, our amygdala hijacks rational thought, causing blow‑ups or shutdowns.
What You’ll Learn
Presence, Perspective & Power. Develop the three leadership super‑powers—perception, resolve and impact—to show up strong, think world‑centrically and act with courage.
Voice & values alignment. Use the Seen–Heard–Valued model and the Values Journey exercise to align your day‑to‑day actions with your deepest values, turning intention into reality.
Navigating moments of truth. Recognise and handle bridging, crucible and rock‑bottom moments by harnessing your inner voice and building resilience.
Ethical decision‑making. Apply frameworks such as Meaning–Magnitude–Measure and learn to speak truth with courage so you can make the best choices when all options feel bad.
Emotional Aikido & engagement rules. Master Emotional Aikido to disarm your triggers and create connection in high‑stakes conversations. Establish clear ground rules to foster collaboration and trust.
This book doesn’t just teach you theory—it gives you exercises, stories and step‑by‑step frameworks for moving from silence to voice, from fear to courage, and from knee‑jerk reactivity to mindful response. If you’re ready to lead with presence, perspective and power, Moments is your blueprint.
What’s Inside?
Part One – Context
Set the scene for why moments matter. Routh explores the cultural and personal forces that shape leadership and shows how voice is the lifeblood of a fulfilling life. She introduces the four personas who don’t speak up and examines the reputational and relational risks of getting leadership wrong.
Part Two – Moments of Truth (Personal)
Learn to recognise and navigate your personal crossroads. This section defines bridging moments (choosing to walk your talk), crucible moments (life‑changing ordeals) and rock‑bottom moments (your lowest lows). Through exercises like the Values Journey, you’ll identify the gap between aspirational and actual values and commit to aligning them.
Part Three – Defining Moments (Ethical)
Here Routh tackles the ethical dilemmas that test your resolve. You’ll learn to use frameworks to evaluate challenges to your leadership and values and to make courageous choices when every option seems wrong. Stories illustrate how truth‑telling, boundaries and true grit forge leaders who can navigate the narrow path between rock and hard place.
Part Four – Heat of the Moment (Interpersonal)
High‑stakes conversations press all our buttons. This section explains how emotional triggers hijack our brains, why we blow up or freeze, and how Emotional Aikido allows us to stay centred. You’ll learn rules of engagement and structures that foster connection, collaboration and decisive leadership.
Conclusion & Next Steps
Routh closes with a call to cultivate conviction, courage and connection. By integrating presence, perspective and power into daily practice, you’ll transform ordinary moments into opportunities for leadership and build a legacy one moment at a time.
Get your copy here now!
Table of Contents page 1 for Moments - Leadership When it Matters Most by Zoë Routh
Table of Contents page 2 - Moments: Leadership When it Matters Most by Zoë Routh
What they say about Moments
“Raw, real and sometimes confronting. Zoë Routh asks the hard questions to you as a person and as a leader … This is not your average leadership book.”
– Donna McGeorge, Best‑selling author books.apple.com