This is a countdown of the ten most popular episodes of 2025.

They weren’t popular by accident.

They resonated because they spoke directly to the challenges recruiters were dealing with day to day. Planning your time. Building pipeline. Positioning retained search. Recovering from burnout. Staying relevant as the market and LinkedIn both shifted.

If you missed any of these the first time around, consider this your shortlist for a stronger, more focused 2026.

Episode Outline and Highlights

• [00:01] Introduction to the Top 10 countdown
• [02:30] #10 – Allicia Birch: The 15-minute planning system
• [09:15] #9 – Rachel Filby: One BD day per week keeps pipeline flowing
• [14:20] #8 – Carol Wenom: How to position retained so clients say yes
• [21:05] #7 – Stuart Barnes: The three-bucket BD model
• [28:40] #6 – Jenny Diaz: Why writing your plan by hand creates commitment
• [34:10] #5 – Deedee Doke: What UK innovation teaches about differentiation
• [39:45] #4 – Jessica Hamilton: Why systems matter more than placements
• [45:30] #3 – Brandon Glyck: How relationships compound into referrals
• [52:00] #2 – Karolina Willis: From mental breakdown to breakthrough
• [58:15] #1 – Richard van der Blom: Why your LinkedIn reach dropped 50%

Why Your LinkedIn Reach Dropped 50%

Richard van der Blom’s episode was the most listened to of 2025. Recruiters everywhere were asking: Why has my reach fallen? LinkedIn didn’t reduce organic reach by accident. It was deliberate. Posts now reach fewer people. But more of the right people. “95% of users have seen a significant drop in reach, while engagement has stayed the same.” Stop chasing reach. Start being clear on what you want from each post.

From Mental Breakdown to Breakthrough

Karolina Willis hit rock bottom in 2023. Months without paychecks. Two young children. Working all day. Lying awake at night. “I said I cannot do this.” What changed wasn’t just encouragement. Karolina made a decisive shift. Changed her environment. Moved states. Went back to fundamentals. Cold outreach. Conferences. Visibility. Her story reminded listeners that resilience is built one hard decision at a time.

How Relationships Compound Into Referrals

Brandon Glyck tried everything. LinkedIn outreach. Reverse marketing. Startup targeting. Then he realized the truth. There is no silver bullet. “It’s not one of these things. It’s all of these things. And doing them every single week.” His account managers pick a lane. Focus on one vertical. Reach out to 100 people each week. That consistency compounds into referrals and repeat business.

Why Systems Matter More Than Placements

Jessica Hamilton cares more about the system than the placement. “Placements are the prize, not the program.” Her focus? Filling the funnel upstream. Marketing. Writing. Speaking. Building credibility. She described the art of the soft sell. Where people don’t feel sold to but guided by someone who understands their world. That mindset shift resonated with recruiters looking for predictable, inbound-driven growth.

What UK Innovation Teaches About Differentiation

Deedee Doke highlighted a key difference between UK and US recruitment markets. In the US, scale dominates. Bigger teams. More placements. In the UK, differentiation matters more. Agencies look for ways to stand out. Innovation. Systems. Smarter technology. Her episode prompted a bigger question: Once you’ve started a recruitment business, how do you turn it into something genuinely viable and resilient?

Why Writing Your Plan by Hand Creates Commitment

Jenny Diaz keeps it simple. Deliberately low-tech. She prints her schedule each morning. Blocks the day into half-hour increments. Writes everything by hand. “If I write it down and put physical effort into making the plan, I’m more committed.” The physical act creates commitment and focus. Her approach resonated because it’s practical, repeatable, and effective for recruiters pulled in too many directions.

The Three-Bucket Model That Makes BD Systematic

Stuart Barnes brought structure to business development. Three buckets. Hot leads that need fast follow-up. Key accounts that require consistent visibility. Long-term relationships that most recruiters neglect. His benchmark? Maintain relationships with at least 300 hiring managers. The episode replaced vague advice with a system recruiters could actually execute.

How to Position Retained So Clients Say Yes

Carol Wenom realized she was already delivering retained-level service. Just not charging for it. “I was providing retained search at a contingency price.” That insight changed how she positioned her work. Instead of selling retained, she helped clients understand urgency, difficulty, and what they’d already tried. Once clients saw the difference, retained made sense. The episode resonated with recruiters who knew they were underpricing their value.

One BD Day Per Week Keeps Pipeline Flowing

Rachel Filby doesn’t squeeze business development into spare moments. She blocks one full day each week. Dedicates it entirely to BD. No delivery. No interviews. Just conversations. “Tomorrow I’m just going to focus on business development for the whole day. Those are always my favorite days.” That discipline keeps her pipeline healthy and her focus sharp.

The 15-Minute Planning System That Eliminates Reactive Work

Allicia Birch plans her day the night before in 15-minute increments. Every call has a purpose. “I break my day down so that every person that I ring, I’ve got a reason for ringing them.” That’s the difference between random activity and purposeful outreach. By breaking the day into four quarters, she avoids letting a slow start derail the entire day. Her system replaces reactive work with intentional activity.

Listen to These Episodes

• TRR #265 – How to Use LinkedIn’s 2025 Algorithm to Attract More Clients and Candidates
• TRR #253 – How I Grew My Recruitment Agency to $300K Monthly
• TRR #254 – How to Build a $5.5M Recruitment Business Almost Entirely Through Referrals
• TRR #240 – From BD to Brand Development: How to Build a Sustainable Recruitment Business
• TRR #257 – Why the Next 5 Years Will Redefine the Recruitment Industry
• TRR #252 – How Top Recruiters Stay Organized and Focused Even in a Tough Market
• TRR #262 – How Contract and Perm Revenue Fueled Our £2.6M Growth in Two Years
• TRR #267 – How to Win Retained Searches and Scale Your Desk with the Rainmaker Model
• TRR #242 – The Human Connection: Why Top Recruiters Lead with Phone Calls
• TRR #264 – How Selective Client Partnerships Help Recruitment Agencies Scale Faster