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They say great minds think alike – or maybe they have similar ideas because they’re observing the same world around them. Each year, as my team and I curate the absolute best books of the year, we discover a few themes in the 1,000+ submissions we consider.
We call them topics—and they reflect a combination of the cultural zeitgeist of what’s happening in business today and the hot topics on the minds of entrepreneurs and business professionals right now. Among the books published this year, we read about the importance of calm and overcoming anxiety, climate solutions, putting generosity first, reassessing the human condition in an age of AI, the power of calm leadership, and much more. Read on to see the trends we’ve noticed and some of our thoughts on how they might be relevant to you as we head into 2025 and beyond.
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1. Anxiety and burn reliever
After a divisive election year, an increase in anxiety and increased awareness about mental health at work, this year, there has been a list of books focused on what to do about burnout at work. Some supported work less, while others focused on productivity hacks. From despair to conquering anxiety, the idea of ​​peace in work and life became an urgent topic, and this reality was reflected through books that aimed to provide the necessary help to the desperate.
2. Mathematical mind
Can mathematics explain the world? This year, math minds took the spotlight to offer perspectives on everything from how AI actually works to how it powers the world’s most popular games. Geography, geometry, statistics, and even thought patterns got the number treatment as this set of books brought math back into the spotlight and argued that understanding the world, making new friends, and changing our perspective come in the most meaningful way. good at math.
3. Aging well
If longevity exploded in 2023, then this year offers a corrective to books that focus on how we live rather than techniques for living longer. Alongside the theme of longevity, many new books this year shifted to providing insights on how to grow old successfully. From midlife love to living a wonderful life with purpose, the new topic of aging seems to be enjoying the time you have, whether it’s a century or less.
4. Rethinking higher education
As the workplace changes and the costs of higher education continue to spark debate, a number of books this year offered either a commentary on the higher education experience or a suggestion for a compelling alternative to the traditional four-year college experience. As more young people consider alternative paths to success, the college question is gaining momentum and is likely to spark much more sustained dissent and conversation over the next year and beyond.
5. Generosity first
Perhaps in response to a world that feels like it rewards toxicity, several books this year put generosity and the idea of ​​generous leadership front and center. Fostering a friendly team dynamic, maintaining hope instead of being cynical and living life by giving back were all key themes that stood out this year as authors offered a more optimistic prescription for how to live and we work that reminded us of the long-forgotten power. of actually caring for each other and why doing so can be the key to prosperity and happiness.
6. Salvation of humanity
Last year, the big theme with AI-focused books was all about designing AI in more humane ways and reducing biases or other potential issues with the technology as it gains widespread adoption. This year, that trend continued, but many books took a more philosophical turn as they pondered human existence in a world ruled by AI. Will we exist or be needed? Is our death inevitable? As we live in a new technological age, these questions have taken on a renewed sense of urgency and attention as many books have helped rethink what it means to be human in an increasingly automated future.
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7. Female lens
Over the past several years, there has been a growing number of writers who have turned their attention to the previously neglected female perspective on many different topics. This year, that female lens focused on the history of women on Wall Street, memoirs from female pioneers like Connie Chung, the techniques of the first female brand, and an exploration of the role of women in creating the crossword puzzle. Along with providing a gender corrective to decades of male-centric perspectives on history, this new range of books offers stories of history’s previously neglected female heroes who deserve to be remembered.
8. Finding purpose
This year, a big topic for many books focused on finding your passion and purpose. Instead of living a rudderless life, people of all ages are seeing memories of living a life of purpose and leaving a legacy they can be proud of. Whether it’s finding your passion or avoiding despair (seasonal, political, environmental, or otherwise), these hopeful books were offered to help you rediscover your purpose and live it with more purpose each day.
9. Climate solutionism
In years past, many books about global warming and climate change described the problem as well as aimed to provide legislative or advocacy solutions. This year, a new perspective emerged regarding “solutionism.” In other words, many books gave us the recipe to fix some of the global man-made environmental problems. At least this positivity focuses on what needs to be done next instead of dividing and assigning blame for how we got here.
10. Imperative of citizenship
After a contentious election season, several books last year aimed to help Americans rediscover their democracy and what it means to be a citizen. From teaching young people about the latter to explaining topics like migration or freedom of speech to the more controversial calls to review and rethink the Constitution itself, the idea that we all need to better understand and perhaps reimagine beliefs fundamental of our government was timely and urgent. the focus of many headlines this year.
11. Quiet leadership
In what might seem like the ultimate irony, several counterintuitive books this year focused on the quieter side of leadership. From embracing silence to increasing cultural intelligence and focusing on the softer side of management, the conclusion seemed to be that the noisier the world becomes, the more effective leaders who buck this trend and embrace the softer side can actually be. their quiet.
12. The antidote of friendship
A year ago, a series of books explored the loneliness epidemic and offered a dire warning about the negative health and emotional effects of isolation. This year, the antidote took center stage in the form of encouraging people to make and strengthen more friendships. These books offered encouragement, tactics, and perhaps most importantly, a reminder that having strong friendships requires the investment of time to make them work.