What if your team isn't lacking initiative—what if they've been trained to stop thinking?

Your employees have ideas. They have opinions. They're capable of solving problems. So why do so many team meetings end with everyone waiting for the boss to tell them what to do?

In this episode of Work Besties Who Podcast, Jess and Claude welcome Dr. Katie Trowbridge, award-winning educator, leadership strategist, CEO of Curiosity to Create, and author of Lead Boldly, Think Deeply.

Dr. Katie challenges one of the biggest assumptions in modern leadership: that managing people means providing all the answers.

Together, we explore what happens when leaders unintentionally reward compliance instead of curiosity, why psychological safety matters, and how simple changes in leadership behavior can help employees think independently and take ownership.

We also get personal about difficult managers, awkwardly silent team meetings, the reality of giving feedback, and why a great Work Bestie sometimes needs to tell you when you're being ridiculous.

You'll walk away with:

• A new perspective on why employees stop speaking up
• Practical ways to build trust and encourage independent thinking
• A smarter approach to team meetings and employee feedback
• Strategies for navigating leaders who shut down your ideas
• A reminder that leadership isn't about creating more followers—it's about helping people grow

Our favorite question from this conversation:

Are you the kind of leader you'd want to be led by?

Whether you're managing a team, building your career, or simply trying to survive another corporate meeting, this conversation will make you rethink what great leadership really looks like.

Connect with Dr. Katie Trowbridge:
https://curiositytocreate.org
https://katietrowbridge.com

Connect with your Work Besties:
@workbestieswhopodcast

Corporate employees by day, entrepreneurs by night, and work besties for life.

Keep supporting each other!

#Leadership #CareerDevelopment #WorkplaceCulture

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