Play You, the Role of a Lifetime

Bridge the Believability Gap to Boost Your Confidence, Connection, and Impact

Published by Post Hill Press
Distributed by Simon & Schuster

About The Book

Ignite your passion, expand your influence, and catapult your success—by being who you are, wherever you are.

In our fast-changing world, there’s often a chasm between who we are, who we think we “should” be, and how we show up for others. It can dim our confidence, connection, and—especially—our believability.

Pam Sherman is a leadership coach, actor, and recovering lawyer who helps people around the world bridge this gap. In Play You, the Role of a Lifetime, she’ll share her counterintuitive solution: The techniques great actors use to create genuine characters can help you

  • Explore your own unique and powerful character
  • Dream and share your inspiring story
  • Grow beyond your believability derailers—unhelpful archetypes and scripts
  • Excite the people you want to impact

Through humor, storytelling, and psychology, Play You, the Role of a Lifetime will help you step “onstage” with courage and conviction.

About The Author

Pam Sherman is an actor, writer, leadership consultant, and recovering lawyer who was profiled in People magazine. Today she speaks, facilitates, and coaches leaders all over the world about how to ignite their audiences and find their EDGE: Explore, Dream, Grow, & Excite®. She works with Fortune 50 companies, law firms, and advertising agencies, and is a highly rated global resource for the leadership organizations EO, Vistage, and YPO. Her nationally syndicated column, The Suburban Outlaw, was published in the USA Today Network for fifteen years. Sherman also stars in the one-woman show Erma Bombeck: At Wit’s End, breaking box-office records around the United States. She’s a graduate of American University and the Cardozo School of Law. She lives in New York with her family, both human and barky.

Product Details

  • Publisher: Post Hill Press (May 18, 2026)
  • Length: 256 pages
  • ISBN13: 9798895650202

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Raves and Reviews

“Pam Sherman shows how to bring your whole self to every room you enter, so you can make a greater impact. Play You is both a pep talk and a practical guide for stepping into your full power.”

Dorie Clark, Executive Education Faculty at Columbia Business School and Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author of The Long Game

“In Play You, Pam Sherman offers a compelling guide to stepping into your most courageous, connected self. On these pages, you will learn how to live and lead with presence and purpose.”

Alexandra H. Solomon, PhD, Adjunct Professor at Northwestern University, Bestselling Author of Love Every Day, and host of the podcast, Reimagining Love

“If you’ve ever struggled to feel like ‘yourself’ in high-stakes moments, Play You is the answer. Pam Sherman offers a fresh, accessible way to find your voice, own the room, and connect with others in a way that truly lands.”

Dr. Tasha Eurich, Organizational Psychologist and Bestselling Author of Shatterproof, Insight, and Bankable Leadership

“Play You is a powerful guide to bridging the gap between who we are and how we lead—with presence, purpose, and humanity.”

Erica Keswin, Workplace Strategist and Bestselling Author of Bring Your Human to Work

“Anyone on-air knows acting techniques give you the discipline to create authenticity. Pam knows and shows us how the two can meld perfectly.”

Dan Patrick, Host of the Dan Patrick Show

“As someone who has spent her lifetime helping people forge meaningful connections, I found Pam’s book to be a powerful guide for showing up and making every moment count.”

Susan McPherson, Author of The Lost Art of Connecting

Play You is a guide for showing up—even when it’s hard. Pam offers practical wisdom about leading with confidence even when your inner critic is loud.” 

Morra Aarons-Mele, Bestselling Author of The Anxious Achiever

“In Play You, The Role of a Lifetime, Pam Sherman delivers a compelling guide to bridging the gap between how you see yourself and how others experience you. With warmth, wit, and wisdom, she shows how the thing people respond to most—our whole true self—is often the very thing we’re least sure how to express. Pam offers clear, practical insights and tools that will help you build trust, connection and believability in work and life.”

Karen Eber, Author of The Perfect Story, TED Speaker, Leadership and Culture Expert

“This book is the perfect antidote to imposter syndrome. The surprising solution? Think like an actor. The best actors don’t just stick to a script—they focus on the parts of their role that align with their true self and make them shine. You can do the same. Packed with practical strategies and unexpected insights, this book helps you boost your confidence, stay present, and show up authentically in every role you play.”

Ron Friedman, Ph.D., Bestselling Author of Superteams and The Best Place to Work

“Believability changes everything—it’s the gap between influence and invisibility. Play You shows you how to claim it, own it, and use it to lead with a power that is fully your own.”

Deepa Purushothaman, Bestselling Author of The First, The Few, The Only

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