We’ve all heard advice about finding a “healthy” or “positive” workplace. But Douglas K. Shaw, author of Curative Culture: Stepping Away from a Toxic Workplace, argues those standards aren’t enough. The real remedy for toxicity, he says, is something deeper: a curative culture—a workplace that not only avoids harm, but actively helps people recover and thrive.
Shaw explains that “curative” implies healing and restoration. “A toxic workplace experience requires recovery for people to regain confidence and equilibrium,” he notes. “Even the strongest leaders can carry self-doubt after such an experience. A curative culture serves to cure.”
Why toxicity lingers
Many employees stay in dysfunctional workplaces because they’ve normalized harmful behaviors. Mission-driven organizations can be especially at risk—noble causes often disguise unhealthy practices like chronic overwork, favoritism, or unchecked incivility. Over time, confidence erodes and exhaustion takes hold.
Shaw, who leads a major fundraising firm, points to both organizational and personal red flags: unexplained turnover, fear-driven decisions, lack of transparency, along with Sunday-night dread, tension headaches, or burnout.
Beyond “healthy” or “positive”
So how does a curative culture differ? According to Shaw:
“Healthy and positive workplaces are valuable, but when a wounded employee joins, they can still bring the residue of toxicity with them. A curative culture acknowledges that we all carry brokenness and requires greater intentionality. It creates space for recovery, so excellence and flourishing become the norm.”
Servant leadership at the core
Servant leadership, Shaw says, is the backbone of a curative workplace. It treats employees as volunteers working toward shared greatness, with values shaping how people experience the company. “Mission and vision answer what you do,” he explains. “Values answer how it feels to work here.”
Creating psychological safety
When leaders don’t naturally connect with someone, Shaw stresses a return to values. If the issue is connection—not performance—leaders must examine whether they’re living up to the values they claim. “Acknowledging missteps is humbling,” he says, “but it frees leaders to encourage and affirm in new ways. A handwritten note or public recognition costs little but can mean everything.”
Common blind spots
A major pitfall, Shaw warns, is obsessing over profit above all else. “Yes, businesses exist to make money,” he says, “but elevating net profit as the sole priority makes us less human. People—whether employees or consumers—create value. Forgetting that fosters toxicity.”
Performance and healing go hand in hand
Contrary to what some may assume, Shaw insists that accountability and high expectations are inseparable from curative cultures. “When people are called to a higher level of commitment to each other, performance rises. Excellence becomes the standard.”
Signs of a healing culture
Leaders can spot progress when employees naturally echo leadership language, when retention rates rise, customer loyalty improves, and profitability grows with fewer HR crises.
Is it worth the effort?
Absolutely, Shaw says. While curative cultures demand vigilance from leaders, the payoff is undeniable: stronger retention, healthier employees, and profits well above average. “If it were easy, anybody could do it,” he quips.
The challenge
For individuals: recognize when a workplace is harming you, and give yourself permission to leave. For leaders: ask whether your culture merely avoids injury—or whether it actively restores and strengthens people.
In an age of widespread burnout, Shaw’s Curative Culture offers a bold blueprint for workplaces that don’t just function, but truly heal.