Have you read any of these, my top favorite reads from 2025? Part two

Do you dream of lazy days on the couch with books in hand, soaking up new knowledge, skills, and perspectives?

Does that feel like a pipe dream? 

If you’d like to read more this year and you’re keen on learning, take advantage of my review of the books I read in 2025.

Because books are everything.

They allow you to inhabit universes far from your own.

Books let you take a quick 5-minute dip or a luxurious, hunker down until hours later, and you emerge all the wiser. 

Books allow you to learn, lead, and laugh.

That’s why I make reading a priority.  

Let’s celebrate all things books!

Here are my choice reads from 2025, part two.  I covered part one last week in the categories of Learning and Development, and Personal Development/Health and Wellness.

Today I’ll finish up with my Business Development-focused books.

Business Development

Virtual freedom, Chris Ducker

• I fell into the world of working with VAs (virtual assistants) fifteen years ago, and I’d never really read anything about tips for getting the most out of this kind of working relationship.  So when this book was recommended to me, I nabbed it
• It is a wonderful book if you’re looking for an introduction to the world of Virtual Assistants.
• It will help you figure out what tasks you need to hire for, and how to manage and motivate your VAs
• It’s a somewhat older book, so some of the tech tools are out of date, but I still highly recommend it
• I particularly liked the section on the most common mistakes people make when working with VA’s, including assuming that they know what you’re talking about in the first place, not giving trifecta instructions (written, video, and voice), and not tracking progress
• If you’re curious about the world of VAs, about to hire one, or if you’ve been working with a VA team for a long while, this book can help

Work Rules!, Insights from Inside Google that Will Transform How you Live and Lead, Laszlo Bock

• This is a compelling book that gives loads of practical examples that are wildly innovative and data-driven
• He goes into detail about ten steps that will transform your team or workplace (you can read a summary of each of these here):
• 1. Give your work meaning.
• 2. Trust your people.
• 3. Hire only people who are better than you.
• 4. Don’t confuse development with managing performance.
• 5. Focus on the two tails (your best and worst employees).
• 6. Be frugal and generous.
• 7. Pay unfairly.
• 8. Nudge (structure your environment for productivity, connection, etc.).
• 9. Manage the rising expectations (e.g., entitlement).
• 10. Enjoy and then go back to No. I and start again.

Make it Happen – The Creative Entrepreneurs’ Guide to Transforming Your Dreams into Reality, Jenna Herbut

This Canadian (yeah! as a fellow Canuck) practical, easy-to-read book is full of practical examples and case studies.

Its “left coast” leaning includes manifestations and talking about vibrations.

The common-sense approach combined with zingers (e.g., your relationship with yourself has to be solid if you’re going to achieve big things) makes you stop in your tracks.

Launch (Updated & Expanded Edition): How to Sell Almost Anything Online, Build a Business You Love, and Live the Life of Your Dreams, Jeff Walker

• If you are thinking about launching an online membership, this book is a must-read.
• Period.
• I highly recommend it.
• It was a top fav of mine in 2024, and I re-read it in 2025.
• It’s in good part why I was able to launch my Transformative Trainers Academy.

Great at Work: How Top Performers Do Less, Work Better and Achieve More, Morten T.  Hansen

• Based on a five-year study, this book has roots in research and deep analysis.  
• The author co-wrote Great by Choice with Jim Collins, the famous author of Good to Great.
• Chockablock filled with great examples, it’s easy to understand and practical.
• Its focus is on the individual, not the organization, so it’s applicable to pretty much anyone, anywhere.
• His research boils down to 7 key factors, 4 of which are focused on mastering your own work and 3 are focused on working with others.
  • 1. Do Less, Then Obsess; Focus on a small number of priorities and pursue them with intense, disciplined effort. Great performers are selective about where they invest their time and energy.
  • 2. Redesign Work; Question how the work is done, not just how hard you work. This includes simplifying processes, removing low-value tasks, and finding smarter ways to get results.
  • 3. Don’t Just Learn, Loop; Learning is not enough. Top performers build tight feedback loops so they can quickly test, adjust, and improve their performance in real time.
  • 4. P-Squared (Passion and Perseverance); Success comes from combining deep passion for the work with grit and sustained effort over time. One without the other is not enough.
  • 5. Fight and Unite; Great performers engage in productive conflict to get the best ideas on the table, then align and commit once a decision is made.
  • 6. Be Disciplined in Collaboration; Collaborate only when it truly adds value. High performers avoid unnecessary meetings and interactions and are deliberate about when and how they work with others.
  • 7. Master the Two Sins of Collaboration; Avoid:
  • Over-collaboration (too many people, too many meetings) and 
  • Under-collaboration (working in silos when coordination is essential)
  • The goal is just-right collaboration
  • So, so good!  Go grab a copy.

Overall top reads of 2025

Phew! You made it through my list of my top 2025 reads.  You may be asking yourself, what are my top, top reads?  I’m happy to tell you.  Out of all the books I read last year, here are my absolute favs:

1. Work Rules!, Insights from Inside Google that Will Transform How you Live and Lead, Laszlo Bock
2. Launch (Updated & Expanded Edition): How to Sell Almost Anything Online, Build a Business You Love, and Live the Life of Your Dreams, Jeff Walker 
3. Great at Work: How Top Performers Do Less, Work Better and Achieve More, Morten T.  Hansen
4. Brave New Words: How AI Will Revolutionize Education and Why That’s a Good Thing, Saul Khan
5. I Haven’t Been Entirely Honest with You, Miranda Hart
6. The Boy, The Mole, The Fox, and The Horse, Charlie Mackesy

I hope some of these books spark your curiosity and you’re motivated to pick up a book and read.

Know I’m cheering you on for your 2026 reading adventures.

Now go on and learn, laugh, and lead

Learn

• Pick a book from my list that calls to you, or make a list of your own

Laugh

• Given the stormy state of the world, sometimes you just gotta laugh. Here for your viewing pleasure are books that do just that.

Lead

• Get reading – whether a few minutes a day or delectable, delicious hours of reading – you won’t regret it.