Hey there!

I am Dr John McSwiney.
Your Time to Transform Guide.

Your Life Can Transform,
Let's awaken Your Power Within.

Dr John McSwiney is a transformational leader, practising lawyer, author, and Associate Professor of Law and Business. His life’s work unites the disciplines of law, leadership, and emotional intelligence to help people and organisations live, lead, and work with authenticity and heart.

As the Founder and Managing Director of Time to Transform, John has spent over twenty-five years guiding individuals, teams, and leaders across education, government, corporate, and community sectors. His programs and publications help organisations move beyond compliance and performance metrics toward cultures built on trust, wellbeing, and purpose.

John’s professional journey is distinguished by both executive and academic leadership. He has served as Director of Technical Training for the Royal Australian Navy, CEO of Haileybury International Beijing, and Director of VCAA International, leading large-scale transformation projects that bridged education, governance, and cultural renewal. Today, as a practising lawyer and Associate Professor, he brings a unique interdisciplinary lens to leadership and organisational development, one grounded in ethics, evidence, and empathy.

His Unbound framework has evolved into a family of books and programs that blend neuroscience, emotional intelligence, and organisational psychology with real-world application. Each publication is aligned with Australia’s highest professional and educational standards, the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF), ASQA, NSQHS, and the APS Capability Framework, ensuring that transformation is both measurable and meaningful.

His works include:

• Heart Unbound: The Ultimate 28-Day Heart Connection Challenge – a personal journey into emotional intelligence and connection.
• Time to Transform: Living Unbound – thirty chapters of heart-based growth and leadership practices.
• The Unbound Leader – a nationally aligned framework for conscious, evidence-based leadership.
• The Unbound Student – a resilience and emotional intelligence handbook for emerging leaders.
• Time to Transform: Living Unbound: The Evidence Companion – the evidence companion linking wellbeing with professional recognition.
• The Unbound Organisation – the next evolution, exploring how workplaces can become living systems that breathe, adapt, and thrive through connection, compassion, and care.

Across his teaching, consulting, and executive practice, John continues to bridge two worlds, the analytical precision of law and the transformative power of the heart. He believes that the future of leadership will belong to those who can hold both, intellect and intuition, structure and soul.

Grounded in both research and humanity, John’s approach continues to inspire leaders, educators, and changemakers across Australia and beyond. Whether working with executives, students, or communities, his message remains consistent: transformation begins not with systems, but with self.

When he isn’t lecturing or writing, you will find John in the ocean, surfing, surf-lifesaving, reflecting, or walking in the quiet stillness that continues to shape his work.

Dr John McSwiney reminds us that true leadership is not about control, but connection, and that the strongest organisations are those built upon trust, integrity, and the courage to lead with heart.