5 Habits to Kickstart 2025: Business Networking Edition

The new year is here, and it's the perfect opportunity to advance your professional journey. Whether you're an entrepreneur, rising leader, or ambitious professional, adopting the right habits can make 2025 your best year yet. Here are five essential habits to expand your business success and networking efforts:

1. Weekly Review (15-Minute Sessions)

The key to sustained success is reflection. Take 15 minutes each week to evaluate your performance: what’s working, what’s not, and how you can improve. This habit will help you stay focused on your goals and make adjustments to stay aligned with your long-term vision. Start each week with a clear plan for your top priorities.

Bonus Tip: Use a journal or a productivity app to jot down insights from your weekly review. Tracking progress visually can give you greater clarity on where you’re excelling and where adjustments are needed.

2. Start Using Tools for Business Productivity

Staying organised is crucial for leaders and entrepreneurs. There are so many to choose from, from the likes of Notion to Google Docs. These tools combine task management, note-taking, and project tracking all in one place. Use them to streamline your workflow, track business goals, and manage your team’s tasks. Plus, you can access them anywhere worldwide, which helps when you travel for work or have a remote team. Implementing a productivity system and having all your content in one place can enhance efficiency and effectiveness.

Bonus Tip: As someone with ADHD, I find having one truth (e.g., Google Suite) is beneficial for sharing and dumping all thoughts, content, and information with the team or client partners, so there's always a working document.

3. Master Deep Work for Business Success

Business leaders need focus to achieve big results. Mastering the habit of “deep work” involves setting aside 90-minute blocks for undistracted, high-impact tasks. Eliminate distractions, avoid multitasking, and create a focused environment to tackle important projects. The ability to concentrate deeply will help you make the most out of every workday.

Bonus Tip: Use a timer, like the Pomodoro Technique, to break your work into manageable intervals (e.g., 25 minutes of work followed by a 5-minute break). This helps maintain concentration while avoiding burnout.

There are plenty of deep work recommendations in my book Unprepared to Entrepreneur, which you can order worldwide.

4. Invest in Building Relationships & Networking

Networking is essential for business growth. Prioritise making connections with others who can help you grow—whether they’re potential clients, collaborators, or industry leaders. Attend events, engage in conversations, and always look for ways to add value to others. Building strong, lasting relationships is key to expanding your influence and network.

Bonus Tip: Don’t focus solely on transactional relationships. Maintain meaningful connections by offering your expertise and support to others first. Networking is about mutual value.

5. Prioritise Personal Branding and Thought Leadership

As a business leader, your personal brand is one of your greatest assets. Focus on developing your thought leadership by sharing insights on topics that matter to your audience. Write articles, speak at events, and engage in online conversations to position yourself as a trusted leader in your field. A strong personal brand will attract new opportunities and help you build meaningful professional relationships.

Bonus Tip: Regularly update your LinkedIn profile, personal website, and other professional platforms to reflect your current expertise, accomplishments, and personal growth.

Takeaway

2025 is the year to take on new habits that can change your business and networking efforts. By incorporating simple practices like weekly reviews, mastering deep work, and prioritising relationship-building, you can make consistent progress toward achieving your goals.

Key Piece of Advice

Focus on building authentic relationships, not just transactional ones. Networking isn’t just about who can help you—it’s about creating mutually beneficial connections that can stand the test of time. Give value first, and the right opportunities will follow.

So What?

By implementing these habits, you’re not just planning for success—you’re setting the foundation for long-term, sustainable growth. The more intentional you are about your daily practices and connections, the more prepared you’ll be to seize new opportunities, expand your network, and achieve your business goals in 2025.

Sonya Barlow is an award-winning entrepreneur, presenter and author with over 100K followers. She hosts her self-titled YouTube show "The Sonya Barlow Show", authored the business book "Unprepared to Entrepreneur" and runs a business inclusion consultancy and networking app the "LMF Network". You can work with Sonya for campaigns, content and conversation. Connect via email - Hello@SonyaBarlow.Co.Uk.