The Workforce Therapy Files team attended the 2025 Kentucky SHRM Conference, in Louisville. We took the opportunity to interview over 20 professionals who stopped by our booth.

Jamie and Molley were joined by Carol Schulte, Keynote Speaker and Founder of The Brāve Initiative. Dr. Brad Shuck also sat in for this interview. Carol shared her mission of empowering individuals to "get their brave on" by embracing their most authentic and vulnerable selves. She challenges HR professionals to create safe spaces where employees can bring their entire identity to their work, asserting that true connection requires being "real" rather than leading from a title. Carol's own "brave" journey includes a series of extraordinary life experiences, such as living in an ashram in India, volunteering in Thai orphanages, and apple picking while living in a van in New Zealand. These experiences inspired her to help others "live big" and focus on a "brave list" of challenges rather than a traditional bucket list.

Regarding modern leadership, Carol believes the "command and control" style is obsolete and must be replaced by a mind shift toward courage and bold decision-making. She advocates for the platinum rule, which encourages leaders to "do unto others as they want you to do to them". This approach requires leaders to know their team members on a deeper, individual level to understand their unique motivations and needs. Carol emphasizes that today's workforce desires "raw humans" as leaders who are comfortable admitting they do not have all the answers. By being vulnerable and sharing their own stories, leaders invite their teams to do the same, fostering a more collaborative culture. To conclude her interview, she left a powerful question for the next participant: "What would you do if you were even braver?".

To learn more, visit:

· Website: www.carolschulte.com

Carol and Brad, thanks for stopping by to speak with us!

That's where we'll leave the conversation for today. Before we close the file, we invite you to reach out to us with questions, suggestions or other comments. We'd love to hear from you.

Need Help Supporting Your Company's Recruiting and Staffing Goals?

We're here to help. You can contact us via our individual websites, depending on your specific needs or questions:

· Jamie Swaim, SPHR – www.ParcelKnows.com

· Molley Ricketts – www.IncipioWorks.com

· Jason Heflin – www.CrowdSouth.com

We hope you found this file insightful and helpful. Thank you for listening!