Psychological safety is, “A shared belief held by members of a team that the team is safe for interpersonal risk-taking,” according to Amy Edmonson, a front-runner in psychological safety research. In other words, it means feeling safe to engage openly without fearing negative social consequences.
Now, doesn’t that sound like nirvana? Imagine being able to toss your ideas into the ring without being mocked or being able to question the status quo without facing a heated argument around the conference room table.
Work should be a safe place to communicate without an unprofessional level of conflict. So, how do we get there?
- Train your leaders: The fastest way to encourage widespread change is by teaching your leaders and having them live that change. Choose a virtual course on emotional intelligence for your leadership team to attend, for example. In setting them up with proper training, they will be able to instill psychological safety through the rest of your team with their words and actions.
- Be authentic: Build trust among your team by just being yourself. Exercise transparency and be real with your employees. You may think keeping plans in your back pocket is a good idea or that they can’t tell when you’re particularly stressed or are putting on a brave face… but they can.
- Be accepting: If you want your employees to open up to you and share their honest thoughts and ideas, be open to hearing things you’ve never considered without beating them back with “what ifs.” I’ve always found it helpful to dream big and consider all the positives that could come of a new idea—what could go right? What could this do for our company?
- Be curious: Has your team hit a roadblock? Rather than blaming others or making assumptions, get curious! With a neutral tone, ask for your staff’s input in solving a problem. Go after it as a team rather than choosing a person to blame. Placing focus on fixing the issue rather than the person builds psychological safety.
- Be open to mistakes: Build a culture where it’s ok to mess up and own it! Leaders, a great first place to start is by admitting a mistake you made. Forgot the handouts for a client meeting? Gave the wrong numbers in a budget meeting? It’s okay to call out your mistake. We’re all human and we all make errors! In fact, it makes it more comfortable for your employees to do the same when they see you leading by example. It also contributes to building a transparent culture.
Is it time to get after your workplace communication? What step above will you start with?
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Joe Kiedinger is a well-versed keynote speaker, entrepreneur, author of three books on leadership: The Brander in Chief, Remove Your Fear, Build Your Career and The Dignity Based Franchise and blogger of Wisdom on Wednesday, CEO of Prophit Co. and holds a utility patent for the technology, Dignify®.
