Welcome

Published June 16, 2026 | By stnetwork

About Steve Toms

I Fixed Things for a Living. Now I Write About Why People Break.

For the best part of four decades, I fixed things. Televisions, radios, HiFi systems, video recorders, satellite boxes, mobile phones, computers, laptops, tablets—if it had a circuit board and a power supply, I probably had it in pieces on my bench at some point.

But here’s the thing: I didn’t just fix things for someone else. From 1980, I ran my own businesses. I was the boss, the technician, the marketer, the accountant, and the tea-maker. If it needed doing, I did it.

That changes how you see the world.

Running a Business Taught Me About People

When you run your own show, you learn fast. You learn that customers don’t always tell you the truth. You learn that a smile can hide a world of frustration. You learn that trust is earned in small moments—and lost in seconds.

I wasn’t just repairing circuits. I was marketing, negotiating, managing expectations, and keeping people happy. Day in, day out, for over 40 years.

I learned what makes people tick. What they actually want (not just what they say they want). Why they buy, why they complain, why they come back—and why they don’t.

That experience shaped everything I now write about. People are complex systems. And I’ve been studying them my whole life.

The Workshop Was One Thing. Their Homes Were Something Else.

About 30% of my work took me into people’s homes. Especially with the massive TVs in the 80s and 90s—you couldn’t exactly pop those in the boot of your car—but later, some customers just preferred me to come to them.

That changed everything.

In my workshop, I diagnosed faults in machines. In their homes, I saw how people actually lived.

I saw the cluttered kitchens, the frantic mornings, the worn-out sofas. I saw the half-finished projects, the stacks of unread post, the quiet moments of calm that people carved out for themselves. I saw chaos. I saw coping. I saw exhaustion. And sometimes, I saw peace.

I wasn’t just a repairman anymore. I was an observer—a quiet witness to how people navigated their daily lives. And I started to notice patterns.

Over the years, I met thousands of people. Not just as customers, but as human beings in their own environment. I watched how they handled frustration, stress, and feeling out of their depth. I watched what tripped them up again and again. And I watched what helped them get unstuck.

I’ve fixed thousands of devices. People are harder. But they’re also more rewarding.

What All This Taught Me

Three threads run through everything I observed:

People run on habits. Good ones, bad ones, and ones they don’t even notice. Change the habit, change the outcome.
Energy is finite. Everyone I met was running on empty—whether they admitted it or not. Protecting your energy isn’t selfish; it’s essential.
Most people know what they need to do. They just don’t trust themselves to do it. They need permission, clarity, and a simple path forward.

Now that I’m retired, I’ve finally had time to sit down and write what I observed—and what I learned.

What I Write About (And Why They’re All the Same Book, Really)

My books are for anyone who feels like modern life is running them ragged. They come from the same place as my repair work and my business experience: a belief that most problems are fixable if you understand them clearly.

Same curiosity. Same practical eye. Same scientific approach. Just different systems.

Food Noise to Food Freedom – If your head is full of endless chatter about what, when, and how to eat, this one’s for you. It’s about quieting the noise and finding a peaceful, sustainable relationship with food. No diets. No guilt. Just clarity.
Morning Routine / Evening Routine – Two books about the bookends of your day. Small, intentional habits that turn chaos into calm—whether you’re stumbling out of bed or collapsing into it at night. Think of them as firmware updates for your daily life.
The Capacity Code: Understanding Your Limits, Protecting Your Energy & Clearing What No Longer Fits – This is the most personal one. It’s about recognising that you only have so much bandwidth—and learning to protect your energy, say no to what drains you, and make space for what actually matters. Battery management for humans, if you like.

Different subjects, yes. But the same philosophy runs through all of them: clear thinking, honest observation, and practical steps that actually work. No fluff. No jargon. No one-size-fits-all answers.

Why Should You Listen to Me?

Fair question. I’m not a doctor, a psychologist, or a lifestyle guru. I don’t have a podcast or a TED Talk (yet—ask me again next week).

What I do have is a lifetime of watching people closely. Not from a lab or a clinic, but from their own homes and from behind my own counter. Tens of thousands of interactions. Decades of noticing what trips people up, what helps them get unstuck, and what patterns keep repeating.

I also ran my own businesses for over 40 years. That taught me marketing, customer psychology, resilience, and the difference between what people say and what they actually do. It’s a whole other package of knowledge—and it feeds into everything I write.

I like evidence. I like root causes. I like simple, elegant solutions that actually work, not just sound good on Instagram.

And I’ve lived what I write. I know what it’s like to feel overwhelmed, to run on empty, to carry things that no longer serve you. Retirement gave me time to reflect on all of it—and to finally share what I’ve learned.

A Few Personal Things

I live in Poole, Dorset, with my family. These days, you’re more likely to find me with a good book than a soldering iron—though I still can’t resist tinkering now and then. Old habits.

I believe a good cup of tea fixes most things. I believe laughter is underrated. And I believe everyone deserves to feel a little less overwhelmed.

Let’s Stay in Touch

If any of this resonates—or if you just want to say hello—I’d love to hear from you. Browse my books, drop me a message, or sign up for my newsletter for practical tips, honest reflections, and the occasional bad joke.

[Browse My Books] [Join My Newsletter] [Get in Touch]

Steve

I spent 40 years finding the fault, fixing the fault, and sending people on their way. Now I do the same for habits, routines, and energy. Different system. Same approach.

Diagnosing life’s glitches—one book at a time.