Exploring Horizons of Entertainment: Recommended Literature, Cinema, and Audio Content for 2025
If your new year's goals involve learning new things, supporting worthwhile causes, or broadening your perspectives, storytelling can be a potent means of unlocking fresh insights. As a rule, what we focus on expands, so consuming content that educates and inspires can serve as a catalyst for growth. Here are some thought-provoking content suggestions for what to watch, read, and listen to this year:
*Golden Chains: Escaping the Prison of Ambition, Perfectionism, and the Never-ending Chase for More*, by Keren Eldad
For those who are overachievers or perpetually seeking the next grand achievement but never feeling content, Golden Chains provides a roadmap for defining success on your own terms. Author Keren Eldad, who has worked with leaders in organizations such as Estée Lauder, J.P. Morgan, and Nike, shares coaching techniques she's utilized. The book is even more relatable because Eldad shares her personal journey of years spent striving to meet society's standards before eventually finding her way out of debt and ending an abusive marriage. She writes, “My obsession with achievement and outward success had caused me to abandon my true self for years. I was ensnared in a trap of my own making.” This book serves as a truthful guide to breaking free.
*Bigger Dreams: A Business Pitch Deck for Women Who Want to Shape the World by Sarah Dusek*
Entrepreneur and venture capitalist Sarah Dusek acknowledges that money has the power to change the world, and wants to help funnel more money to women entrepreneurs with her new guide, Bigger Dreams: A Business Pitch Deck for Women Who Want to Shape the World. Dusek founded and scaled her own successful glamping company, Under Canvas, and sold it for over $100 million in under a decade. She subsequently launched Enygma Ventures, a private investment fund backing women-led businesses across Africa and has aided over 10,000 female entrepreneurs. This book will arm women entrepreneurs with specific tactics to secure capital, expand their businesses, and effect positive change.
*My Midlife Awakening with Reshma Saujani*
A podcast featuring genuine conversations about women's midlife crises concludes the list. The founder of Girls Who Code and Moms First, Reshma Saujani, brings her signature candor and ability to shed light on topics that are seldom discussed to the show. Saujani uses her platform to help women feel less alone and offer practical solutions. She invites entertaining guests, including Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Margaret Cho, and Gloria Steinem, who discuss a variety of topics, such as why it may be advantageous for parents to schedule sex to what it means to embrace your crone age to parenting our parents.
*Human First: Practices for Empathetic, Expressive Leadership , by Paul Wolfe**
This book is about improving as a leader, and it requires embracing your humanity first. Author Paul Wolfe, a proponent of human-first leadership and former CHRO at Indeed, Match.com, and Condé Nast, shares how he learned to embrace himself as a human being before leading, and offers tools for others to do the same, combining real-world examples, science, and expert insights. In our era, where traditional leadership styles are no longer indicative of effective leadership, Human First will encourage you to reflect not only on how you lead but also on how you live.
*Fear and Today, directed by Liat Ron
Director Liat Ron, who experienced a traumatic first birth that instilled fear during her second pregnancy, delves into what she sees as the norm rather than the exception. In her second pregnancy, Ron discovered hypnobirthing, a childbirth education method that challenges the idea that birth experiences need to be feared but can instead be enjoyable. The impact was so profound for Ron that it prompted a journey where she traveled across the country, documenting the stories of women and practitioners who were leveraging the method to improve birth experiences. Fear and Today is a groundbreaking documentary feature film set to premiere in 2025, exploring the fear-based birth culture in the United States and hypnobirthing as a solution, which Ron calls, “the best-kept secret in the birth community.”
*From Burned Out to Illuminated: How to Reignite the Joy of Leading People by Daisy Auger-Dominguez
Author Daisy Auger-Dominguez, who has served as a chief people officer at Fortune 500 companies such as Vice Media, Google, Disney, and more, shares her wisdom on leading people successfully while avoiding burnout. Auger-Dominguez recounts her own experience of burning out while leading people and offers tactical strategies for managers to protect themselves and their teams. Chapter titles include “The Hulk With Heart: Caring for People (And Yourself) Through Your Anger,” and “Get Right Within: Become the Manager Every Team Deserves.”
*Survivor's Fortune directed by Drew Denny**
This documentary chronicles the pursuits of entrepreneurs at Gifted, a survivor-owned and -operated marketplace, launched by FreeFrom. FreeFrom founder Sonya Passi explains, “When I founded FreeFrom, I had a simple idea: survivors make remarkable entrepreneurs—they possess the resilience, necessity, and determination needed to succeed.” Ultimately, this film delves into the catharsis, community, creation of prosperity, and the power of consumers to drive social change through their consumption choices.
*Engaging Conversations: Navigating Change with People You'd Prefer to Engage*By Loretta J. Ross
Activist and writer Loretta J. Ross proposes a strategy for change in these divided times, suggesting inviting people into dialogue instead of confrontation. The book, a blend of memoir and guide, avoids superficial advice and instead shares Black feminist and MacArthur "Genius" Fellow Ross's personal experiences, explaining why focusing on shared values instead of retribution can catalyze change.
*The Art of Team Mastery: Guiding Teams to Peak Performance *By Vijay Pendakar
According to author and fractional HR advisor Vijay Pendakur, tension on teams is not inherently negative but can foster innovation if managed correctly. This book, a fusion of behavioral science and organizational psychology, aids leaders in dealing with exhaustion from constant change caused by factors like elections, inflation, and artificial intelligence. Inside, you'll find a method for creating an atmosphere and employee experience that promotes increased engagement and enhanced performance.
*Unraveling the Threads *With Elise Loehnen
Former magazine editor and goop's head content creator Elise Loehnen discusses life's significant questions and engages with some of the most influential figures of our time on her podcast. Topics span from Maria Rodale's perspective on connecting with nature, Esther Perel's view on conflict as a catalyst for growth, to Farnoosh Torabi's insights on overcoming money anxiety. Loehnen's talent for distilling complex ideas will captivate your commute and inspire profound personal insights.
The survivor from Gifted, featured in the documentary 'Survivor's Fortune' directed by Drew Denny, demonstrates the resilience and determination needed to thrive as an entrepreneur.
In 'Golden Chains: Escaping the Prison of Ambition, Perfectionism, and the Never-ending Chase for More' by Keren Eldad, Reshma Saujani shares her own journey of escaping societal pressures and finding happiness with her own definition of success.
'Bigger Dreams: A Business Pitch Deck for Women Who Want to Shape the World' by Sarah Dusek, who founded Under Canvas, provides practical tactics for women entrepreneurs to secure capital and effect positive change.
Loretta J. Ross, an activist and writer, proposes in 'Engaging Conversations: Navigating Change with People You'd Prefer to Engage' that focusing on shared values, rather than retribution, can catalyze change in divisive times.
Daisy Auger-Dominguez, in 'From Burned Out to Illuminated: How to Reignite the Joy of Leading People', offers tactical strategies for leaders to avoid burnout and create an engaging atmosphere for their teams.
