Making the Jump to Light Speed in 2025! - The One Crucial Work Skill We Think You Need for Next Year.

We hope you had a warm and safe holiday season and the stockings were full.

Banyan exists to enhance the success of those we are fortunate enough to know, and after 11 years, the tree of connections and relationships keeps growing.

Everyone is on their own path toward their vision of success, yet we have noticed some common traits and habits while listening. In these publications, we try to create a collective understanding of what is working now and what changes we are noticing.

Grainger is an industrial supply company that says they are “Here to serve you, the ones who get it done.” At Banyan, we aim to offer a similar service but with business strategy and tactics.

In the spirit of “Getting it Done in 2025,” here is what we noticed this year and how we think it might impact you.

Who We Listen To

The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal appear to be the final two print publications bridging the gap to the digital world of podcasts and alternative format media.

The cable TV world is now feeling the squeeze they gave to the broadcast players decades ago from the streamers of Netflix, Amazon, Apple, and YouTube.

Millions of choices mean the audience is not guaranteed to be on the same page, and we all need a sorting machine that hasn’t been created yet. “What are you watching?” is something I often hear in social settings.

Podcasts have been improving and do a good job of allowing niches to exist. I noticed our habits have changed a bit. I listen to the following podcasts.

The Allin Podcast – www.allin.com for a weekly review of business and technology.

The Founders Podcast – www.founderspodcast.com for a study of human success through biographical review.

This Week In Startups Podcast – www.thisweekinstartups.com for a bottom-up look at what new technologies are being built and interviews with the founders.

I listen to podcasts when in the car and doing my chores around the house and yard on the weekends.
It is really interesting that 60 years after the world was getting information from Walter Cronkite while sitting in front of a small screen, more and more people are getting their information on the fly while they are moving and listening. Yes, people are also watching videos, but the need to be informed while remaining static is gone.

Keep Moving…

All the billionaires are back in the game.

Imagine if you could have all the greatest NBA players on the court simultaneously at their prime, playing in a mythical NBA finals. Bring the popcorn! Watching Jordan and Bill Russell match wills against Shaq and Bird with Magic and Steph flying around the court, chirping would be epic.

Well, that is what it feels like in the business world right now, as all the big players are allocating capital and making bets on retaining or gaining more leverage as the AI revolution continues. Bezos is back at Amazon, Sergey is back at Google, and Elon appears to have at least 5-billion-dollar bets running.

The good news is that we are all playing in this game, and over 2024, we chronicled what we thought were the crucial work skills professionals should be acquiring and honing to sustain excellence. The Crucial Work Skills white paper is meant to combine with our Essential Elements of Close Knit Teams white paper from 2023 to empower you to bring your best self while working with others for joint success.

One reader asked us what we thought the most crucial work skill would be right now, and in reviewing what we wrote and learned this year, it has to be the ability to deeply understand what your customer needs next. What are they frustrated with right now, what pain are they living with, and how can you help improve their condition?

We have called this tactical empathy and will be diving further into how you can improve your ability to understand your customers' needs so that you earn the right to have a crucial conversation about getting them to a better state.

You may not be a billionaire, but you are in the game of business, and 2025 appears to be another year of adaptability and flexibility as you use new tools to surprise and delight your customers.
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Bring on the new year; we can’t wait!

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