What Writing a Children's Book Taught Me About Taking Risks

by ‘Iolani L. Bullock, Guest Speaker & Author of Lennox Takes Flight & Little Lennox Takes Flight

Leadership often requires stepping into the unknown. You may not have all the answers or a clear roadmap. Sometimes you simply recognize an opportunity, make the best decision you can with the information available, and figure out the rest along the way.

That's exactly how I became a published author.

When my son was only a few months old, I looked for children's books about travel featuring characters who looked like him. I couldn't find what I was looking for, so I decided to create it.

The problem? I had never written a children's book. I knew nothing about publishing.

But I saw a gap, and I took the risk.

I began writing Lenox Takes Flight in a Bangkok hotel room, with my two-month-old strapped to me in a carrier. While my husband worked for USAID, I explored the city with our newborn, often relying on the kindness of complete strangers. People who had never met us offered to hold my baby so I could write, eat, or simply take a break.

There was something beautiful about that. A child who was completely unfamiliar to them, and yet the instinct to help a mother and care for a baby was universal.

Looking back, that experience taught me something I've carried into my leadership: you don't need a perfect plan to begin. Sometimes leadership is trusting yourself enough to start and executing the best you can with what you know. And sometimes, the biggest risks lead you somewhere you never imagined.

I'm looking forward to unpacking that idea at the upcoming Passport to Leadership event and sharing more of the story behind the books, along with a few lessons on turning an idea into something real.