Every year we get numerous books sent to us and numerous request to appear on the podcast from new authors. And of course we are alwasy on the lookout for great books, and this year there were many of them. Every single year we do our best to narrow this list down to the one or two of those books truly stand out. You can see the books lists from previous years here but this year there are two books that really have stuck with me, and I use stories and ideas from them every single day. So this year I have co-champions for my three favorite books.

Kids These Days: Effective Strategies for Coaching Gen Z and Beyond by Betsy Butterick

I think one of the most challenging things as both a parent and a coach is understanding who is in front of you and what do they need in that moment. Kids These Days is an incredible book for understanding, communicating with, and inspiring GenZ and beyond. Betsy Butterick is a communication specialist, as well as a former collegiate basketball coach, and works with high performing teams and athletes all over the country. This book is full of so much insight into why Gen Z and beyond thinks, questions, and acts like they do, and every chapter has specific tools and ideas so you can connect better. As Butterick says, “you have to reach them before you teach them “and no true or word exists in coaching and parenting. I truly believe this book belongs on the nightstand of every coach, parent, and teacher. I read it in one sitting it’s so good If you want to grab a copy, Here is the link for Kindle book and here is a link to Betsy’s website to buy a hard copy.  I believe an audiobook is forthcoming as well.

Become Unstoppable: The All Blacks Blueprint for High Performance by Gilbert Enoka

Gilbert Enoka has been the mental performance guru for the greatest team in the history of professional sports, the New Zealand all blacks rugby team. Many books have been written about the work he has done, including legacy by James Kerr, one of my books of the year many years ago. Finally, Anoka has put pen to paper and told the story of the all black success from his perspective. This book has so many brilliant insights as well as stories of how he got started in a time where no one had mental performance coaches and he had to pretend he was the team masseuse. These days Anoka works with high performing teams across the globe, including Chelsea, professional, basketball, cricket, and many other sports. You will get so many ideas and questions to throw to your team leadership, practical tools for building your culture, and weeding out those who will never buy in, and so much more. This book is a page turner and you will not be the same coach once you add it to your tool kit.

Click here to buy Become Unstoppable

Win the Inside Game by Steve Magness

Steve Magness is one of the co-authors of the Growth Equation newsletter and author of Do Hard Things, our favorite book a few years back. This book is all about finding your identity by aligning yourself with personal conviction rather than external validation. True fulfillment, confidence, and inner strength comes from this internal validation and purpose, and helps you move from surviving to thriving. What an incredible book and one every coach, parent and athlete should have and use daily.

Thanks for reading everyone. Do you have any suggestions or thoughts on additional books that you read and were published in 2025? Also links above our Amazon affiliate links so if you do purchase a book, we’ll make about $.30 which helps us keep the lights on. Thank you in advance.