The Book · Coming 2026
The Book · Coming 2026
Not My Finest Lesson
The Honest Conversation Education Has Been Waiting For
Whether you are lying awake on a Sunday night wondering if you got it right, stepping into middle leadership with a shaky voice, or contemplating your next career chapter beyond the chalkface – this book is for you.
In Not My Finest Lesson, educator and Gogglebox star Baasit Siddiqui lays bare 52 hilarious, painful, and deeply relatable mistakes from his 20-year journey in education. From tech disasters and whole-class sanctions to staffroom burnout and imposter syndrome, Baasit dismantles the myth of the infallible teacher to reveal a liberating truth: our worst lessons often teach us the most.
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Not My Finest Lesson officially publishes on November 2026. Sign up today to secure:
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(3) FORWARD PREVIEW
Coming November 2026
Forward Preview
Dr Richard Gerver
I screwed up on day one of my teaching career… We stand at the front of the room expected to be certain, expert, and infallible. But expertise isn’t about knowing everything; expertise is knowing what to do when you don’t.
Baasit has taken 52 of his own mistakes—the funny, the painful, and the uncomfortable ones—and put them out there for the rest of us. You will laugh, you might cringe, but above all, you will realise: You are not alone, and you are enough.
Dr Richard Gerver | Educator · author · speaker
(04) — Who is this book is for?
Three readers. One honest book.
Not a guide to perfect teaching! It’s a guide to surviving the gap between who you thought you’d be and who you actually are in that room.
For Early-Career & Trainee Teachers
The Initiated
The reality check
Surviving the gap between who you thought you'd be and who you actually are in that room.
What you'll learn
Why warmth without consistency is a slippery slope, how to de-escalate disruption with calm curiosity ("Kill with Kindness"), why politeness isn't understanding, and how to stop "Pink Pen Paralysis".
The takeaway
You are not failing; you are building your craft.
For Experienced Teachers & Leaders
The Invested
The recognition
A tribute to a career built from the moments that didn't go to plan, and the realisation that those moments mattered most.
What you'll learn
Stepping into leadership without imposter syndrome, breaking down the "us vs. them" staffroom story, recognising burnout in yourself and colleagues, and partnering with support staff who hold deep relational insight.
The takeaway
Reclaiming your professional agency and protecting your energy for what truly lasts.
For Aspiring Educators & Those Outside the Classroom
The Interested
The perspective shift
Realising you're already an educator in all but name. The coaching, mentoring and volunteering you do for young people counts, and there's a place for you in education.
What you'll learn
An honest reality check on classroom life before you apply, how the skills from your current career carry straight into working with young people, and the many ways to contribute beyond becoming a teacher (outreach, mentoring, volunteering and partnerships). Plus why the journey is a cycle: the Initiated become the Invested, and the Invested can become the Interested again, because nobody is "just a teacher".
The takeaway
You don't need the job title to make a difference. Education needs you, whichever door you come through.
(05) — Inside the book: the three parts
Part 1: The Classroom and Its Craft (Mistakes 1–25)
Explores early mishaps in questioning, behavior, pacing, tech, and whole-class feedback—rebuilding the craft from trial and error.
Part 2: Life Beyond the Classroom (Mistakes 26–34)
Reflects on the wider school ecosystem: staffroom dynamics, parent communications, working with Teaching Assistants, and finding your leader voice.
Part 3: Pressure, Perspective and the Bigger Picture (Mistakes 35–52)
Deeply personal reflections on burnout, mental presence, career pivots, and the long-term legacy we leave for the students who come through our doors.
(06) — The connective tissue
Every mistake in this book connects back to a human-centered framework developed by Baasit Siddiqui:
This is a genuine thread throughout the book because the 7Cs to Thrive (Curiosity, Creativity, Collaboration, Compromise, Communication, Courage, and Community) aren’t just a framework for young people. They’re the conditions under which adults do their best work too.
The book is the evidence. The 7Cs are the connective tissue that runs through all of it.
Curiosity
Ask why, imagine what if
Creativity
Light bulb moments deserve a spotlight
Collaboration
Build, lead and listen together
Compromise
Respect ideas, disagree agreeably
Communication
Great ideas need a voice
Courage
Feel scared, try anyway
Community
Find your tribe and serve it
(07) — What people say
Testimonials & Early Praise
For me, this is the kind of book that staff will underline, screenshot, discuss with colleagues and
return to repeatedly throughout different stages of their career. I think it would resonate strongly
across schools, Trusts and teacher development programmes because it captures the reality of
education with honesty, humour and humanity.
Aimee Williams
Director of Education – Three Spires Trust
Not My Finest Lesson — I read it pretty much in one sitting and loved it. I’m reminded of Groucho Marx’s famous advice: ‘Learn from the mistakes of others. You can never live long enough to make them all yourself.’ Baasit Siddiqui’s story brings that sentiment wonderfully to life.
Prof Dr Ger Graus OBE
Global Education Adviser and Author
Through outlining and exploring his 52 mistakes in education, Baasit Siddiqui becomes the mentor which every teacher deserves to have had. During my PGCE year, one of my lecturers shared that ‘the classroom can be one of the loneliest places in the world’. This felt like an incredibly odd statement – only making sense when I actually began my teaching journey.
Told with warmth, authenticity and an unwavering commitment to supporting educators, at every part of their career, Not My Finest Lesson is a tool for reflection, a provider of practical action and a giver of joy and faith for when you are feeling the call to reconnect with your educational tribe.
Laura Spargo
Education Consultant and Primary English Specialist
Baasit has crafted something quite beautiful, a deeply human, authentic and realistic account of what it is to be an educator, at times it is funny, raw and emotive but above all, it is optimistic. This book will help you realise, you are not alone, we are all fallible and you are enough!
Richard Gerver
Keynote speaker and former teacher
(08) — spread the word: help us reach 10,000 teachers before launch
We are on a mission to ensure no educator feels isolated or overwhelmed this school year. If Not My Finest Lesson speaks to you, help us spread the word!
(08) — Be the first to know
Join the movement
Ready to Embrace the Magic of Being Human First, Teacher Second?
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