The Self-Trust Recession: Why Brilliant Professionals Go Unheard and How to Change That with Neelu Kaur
What if the silence in your meetings has nothing to do with confidence and everything to do with culture? Organizational psychologist Neelu Kaur joins Lori Adams-Brown to decode the invisible operating systems shaping how professionals communicate, advocate for themselves, and lead across cultures and organizational hierarchies.
IN THIS EPISODE:
- What the "self-trust recession" is and why it matters for global leaders right now
- The paradox at the heart of corporate America: individualistic society, yet over-indexed workplaces
- Why "just speak up" is incomplete advice when power dynamics are involved
- The Abilene Paradox: how teams end up agreeing to decisions nobody actually wants
- The difference between assimilation and adaptability at work and why organizations are getting it wrong
ABOUT NEELU KAUR:
Neelu Kaur is a global keynote speaker, organizational psychologist, and author of Be Your Own Cheerleader: An Asian and South Asian Woman's Cultural, Psychological, and Spiritual Guide to Self-Promote at Work. She partners with Fortune 500 companies to build transformative leadership cultures, holds a Master's in Social and Organizational Psychology from Columbia University, and is a certified NLP master practitioner.
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 - Introduction and Neelu's cross-cultural background (India to the US)
04:00 - The self-trust recession: outsourcing inner authority in the age of AI
08:00 - The I vs. We paradox in corporate America
12:00 - Assimilation vs. adaptability in hiring and onboarding
18:00 - Psychological safety and cultural assessments in executive teams
22:00 - Inclusion at work events: safety, restraint, and belonging
26:00 - Speed culture vs. strategic depth: the cost of always being on autopilot
36:00 - The Abilene Paradox and how groupthink silences the room
Join us for the exclusive bonus episode on Patreon with Neelu.
FIND NEELU KAUR AT:
Website: https://www.neelukaur.com
Book: Be Your Own Cheerleader (available where books are sold)
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Lori Adams-Brown, Host & Executive Producer
A World of Difference Podcast
