The absolute best of CCP 2025

The most-read, most-clicked Catbird Care Package editions from the past year

Author

Courtney Howard
December 17, 2025

In the December 2025 edition:

  • ICYMI: A roundup of the most popular Catbird Care Package articles from 2025 đź‘€

  • The best small business resources and links I shared this year

  • Treats, treats, treats! 🍬🍭🍪🍧🍫

SOMETHING USEFUL

Best of Catbird Care Package 2025

These were the most popular Something Useful articles from the past year. Thanks for reading, clicking, and sharing with your friends!

I wrote this right after the tariffs hit and there was a lot of fear and anxiety about what might happen next. There’s always some of that feeling in the air for small business owners, so here’s a guide for how to stop panicking and start moving forward, no matter what’s going on.

A simple but thorough look behind the curtain at my own business. The steps may not apply to every single type of business, but every single business owner should have their own version of this (I can help you get there if you need a hand.)

A week in the life of Catbird Consulting! All the client meetings, projects, internal ops/financial work, and everything else I do to run my business in a typical week. And yes, I do still watch Pokemon with my son after school most afternoons.

P.S.—My personal favorite CCP article this year was “AI can’t do the things that matter most” from the April edition. Despite how fast AI technology is advancing, this article is still 100% relevant 8 months later.

SOMETHING NEAT

Here are my favorite (and most-clicked) Neat resource links from 2025:

Learning about the concepts of time poverty and time affluence was life-changing for me, and it seemed to resonate with a lot of you, too—from the July edition.

However you feel about AI (decidedly meh for me) there’s no question that people are using it to find products and services. Use these resources to make sure your business shows up in ChatGPT results, especially if you have a Shopify or Squarespace site—from the October edition.

Got a New Year’s resolution to be more hands-on in Quickbooks (or hire someone else to do it for you?) Check out these tutorials, or how to find expert help near you—from the May edition.

A LITTLE TREAT

And it wouldn’t be a proper Catbird Care Package without some Little Treats:

My recipe for Oatmeal Toffee Tax Cookies, because you deserve a sweet treat after your taxes are filed—from the April edition.

One of my favorite podcasts that always reminds me that creative work is inherently difficult, and challenges & setbacks don’t mean you’re failing—in the August edition.

A fun article about how the iconic TV show The Office got started, before anyone knew it would be a huge hit—from the March edition.

Thanks for reading, and have a happy New Year!

WORK WITH ME

This newsletter is for everyone, but a one-on-one consulting engagement is tailored to you and your business. Here’s how I can support you:

  • Strategic Action Planning—For solo business owners with a lot to do, and never enough time. We’ll refine, prioritize, and organize your goals, and I’ll create a road map for you to get them done. (My most popular service.)

  • Resilience Jumpstart—Turn analysis paralysis into decisive action with affordable 1:1 support to get you moving in the right direction fast.

  • Operations Analysis—Is your business built on a strong foundation? An operations deep dive will tell you exactly what to do to make your business work better from the inside out.

  • General Consulting—Get expert support with business challenges like workload sustainability, financial fundamentals, pricing, client communication, and more.

Thanks for reading—see you next month. If you have a business owner friend who would find this newsletter useful, please share it with them!