I've definitely grown into the job after that difficult first Test against Pakistan. I'd been captain for the Sri Lanka one-dayers, which hadn't gone well, and all the talk was that I only had that one Test as captain.
During my career as an airline pilot, I had the opportunity to be a check and training captain. Part of this job was to train and test experienced pilots to ensure that they had the necessary knowledge and skills to safely and efficiently operate those magnificent big jets.
Throughout my entire life, I've always been a captain. I was the captain of my high school team. I was the captain at Oklahoma State University. I was the captain of the 2008 Olympic team.
Generally my typical books have lots of twists and turns a big surprise ending and then usually another surprise at the end and ideally, as in Garden of Beasts, we get to the very end and we find at the last few pages that there's yet another surprise.
I am honoured to be appointed Test captain.
I got to experience being captain in the World Cup. For me, that was something special, and I'll always kind of remember, but it's never been a big thing for me to be captain.
I've never had a surprise birthday party. I've had every other type of surprise. I've had surprise beatings, surprise drug tests, surprise daughter I think.
Sports were a big part of my life. I was the captain of the basketball team in high school, and captain of the basketball team at Princeton.
Above all, I want to captain England in more Test victories than anybody else.
How you treat the helpless is the real test of morality. Lots of people are flunking that test big time.
It's not an issue for me if I captain England in 42 Tests or in 50. It's a question of what is best for the team in Test and one-day cricket.
My first trip as a captain against Pakistan in 2003 - we had never won there before, but then we won both the Test Matches and One-Days.
I have been given a fantastic opportunity to captain the Test side and will continue to work very hard at doing my best at that.
I was very surprised when Dhoni retired from Test cricket; I thought he would have kept playing. He is a big player and you need big players in big tournaments.
Just in a matter of eight months to win the U-19 World Cup as captain and then make the Test team is quite unreal.
I will be captain for my teammates and be captain of Manchester United is an important achievement for me but I think everyone is the captain, everyone needs to help and be a leader in their own way, leadership is different in every player.