Anika sits down with Dr. Mickey Fitch Collins to expose the leadership development trap most companies fall into, uncover the psychological safety crisis silently burning out middle managers, and reveal the counterintuitive secret to sustainable organizations: it’s never about the strategy. It’s about the people executing it—and whether they feel confident enough to show up as their whole selves.

In This Episode

• Bass fishing to breakout rooms: How 30 years of professional fishing taught her more about leadership than any MBA—and why early public speaking shaped her entire career
• The leadership development gap: Why companies wait until Burnout is critical to invest in leaders, and the cost of reactive vs. proactive development
• Middle manager isolation: The push-pull Stress of serving two masters, losing peer Relationships, and why leaders are abandoned once they “make it”
• Psychological safety as the foundation: Why you can’t build better leaders without first creating spaces where people can be honest, vulnerable, and whole
• The burnout epidemic: How the WHO classifies burnout as a Health concern, and why control-based work models are burning people out
• Remote work and trust: Why flexible work aligned with individual needs enhances motivation, and why monitoring software is the opposite of trust
• Learn It Lounge podcast: Building community among L&D professionals by sharing authentic problem-solving stories
• The giving phase: What’s next for Mickey—Coaching, speaking, and helping others grow while designing a life centered around Family

Timestamps

• 00:00 Introduction: From pro bass fisherman to leadership facilitator
• 06:23 Why she left higher Education after 20 years and a PhD
• 08:00 The pandemic pivot: From C-suite to corporate learning and development
• 16:00 The most common breakdown when companies scale: Delayed leadership investment
• 20:20 Why outsiders and consultants bring objective credibility
• 24:30 The push-pull of middle management and burnout
• 30:31 Psychological safety as the antidote to burnout
• 34:32 Work models and control vs. trust: Why flexible work beats surveillance
• 38:26 How Learn It Lounge started and what’s next for Mickey

Key Insights & Takeaways

Insight 1: Leadership Is a Learnable Skill, Not Innate Expertise

Being a great founder, engineer, or visionary doesn’t automatically make you a great people manager. Leadership—coaching, vision-casting, conflict resolution, delegation—is a skill set that must be built. The organizations that win are the ones that invest in emerging leaders before they’re in crisis mode, not after.

Insight 2: Proactive Development Beats Reactive Intervention

Companies that delay leadership investment until burnout, turnover, or conflict forces their hand end up spending 3-4x more on reactive solutions. The smartest organizations identify rising stars early and develop skill sets before people are drowning.

Insight 3: Psychological Safety Is the Foundation of Everything

You cannot build better leaders, improve communication, or increase engagement without psychological safety. When people can admit mistakes and be vulnerable without fear, they stop wearing masks and performing—and that’s when real Growth happens.

Insight 4: Control-Based Work Models Are the Opposite of Trust

Strict hours, in-office mandates, and monitoring software send one message: “I don’t trust you.” When organizations care for the whole human—flexible work, autonomy, trust—they get higher motivation, lower turnover, and higher profitability. The research is clear.

Insight 5: Storytelling Creates Meaning Beyond Data

We make decisions with data, but we make meaning with stories. In the age of AI and critical thinking, storytelling and authentic presence are just as important as problem-solving skills.

Resources & Links Mentioned

Learn It

https://www.learnit.com/

Learn It Lounge Podcast

https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/the-learnit-lounge/id1817436348

Conversations with L&D professionals sharing authentic problem-solving stories and best practices

About Dr. Mickey Fitch Collins

Dr. Mickey Fitch Collins is a leadership facilitator and learning strategist at Learn It, specializing in leadership self-efficacy and building confident leaders. With a PhD in Leadership and Higher Education, a master’s degree in Counseling and Student Personnel, and a bachelor’s degree in Psychology, Mickey spent 20 years in higher education leadership before transitioning to corporate learning and development during the pandemic.

Her unique origin story includes 30 years of professional bass fishing experience—competing at the national level with 30+ sponsors, speaking at expos and on radio and TV. This early experience shaped her public speaking confidence, marketing acumen, and deep understanding of leadership in male-dominated environments.

Connect with Dr. Mickey Fitch Collins

Learn It Website: https://www.learnit.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mickeyfitchcollins/

Open to: Coaching, speaking engagements, and mentoring emerging leaders

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Most Recent Episodes

July 10, 2026

S E755: Dick Wybrow on Reframing Your Limitations as Creative Superpowers

In this return episode, Anika and Dick Wybrow break down the exact mindset shift required to transition between industries, why independent publishing outperforms traditional deals for genre fiction,...

Listen · 50:48

July 8, 2026

S E754: PR Beats SEO: Benjamin Behrooz on Building Real Authority in 2026

Anika teamed up with Benjamin Behrooz to decode why massive exposure so often fails to drive revenue. The conversation revealed a counterintuitive truth: the problem isn't content creation—it's...

Listen · 51:02

July 6, 2026

S E753: Part Two: Stephan Bajaio on Digital Visibility

Part Two: Stephan Bajaio on Digital VisibilityAnika continues her conversation with Stephan Bajaio, diving deeper into what it really means to lead people in a way that outlasts you. Moving beyond...

Listen · 52:29

Load More Episodes

Anika Jackson Creative Strategist, Podcaster

Anika is a mother, community volunteer, philanthropist, marketing and communications strategist and podcast host. As a marcom executive, she has done it all including experiential marketing/ event production, launch marketing, public relations, digital, and influencer throughout her multiple decade career.

She is a member of the Quickbooks Small Business Council, as well as on the Advisory Board for the Women in Leadership program for UCSB’s PaCE; advisor for Junior League of Los Angeles’ 2022 – 2023 President; Co-founder and board member of Learn Grow Lead; and Ballona Wetlands Philanthropy Chair for National Charity League’s Pier Chapter.

In Anika’s newest role, she is an adjunct professor at USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, teaching graduate students in both the Masters of Public Relations and Advertising as well as the Masters of Digital Media Management programs.