Psychological Safety at work: Why you need it and how to foster it
Imagine coming to a work environment where you felt empowered to use your voice and unashamed of your own humanity. Empowered to challenge ideas, to voice your concerns, to ‘have a go’ and take reasonable risks, and to make genuine mistakes, all without fear of punishment or embarrassment for doing so. These are the characteristics of a psychologically safe workplace.
If I was to suggest one single concept as the undervalued secret to organizational success, it would be psychological safety. Not just another employee well-being fad, psychological safety has a real impact on your organization’s bottom line:
- Research into psychologically safe workplaces notes an increase in trust, creativity, confidence and productivity.
- A 2017 Gallup report noted that increasing psychological safety leads to higher employee engagement, resulting in a potential 12% increase in productivity.
The research results are not surprising really. If you think about it, if people feel safe expressing themselves, there is more open dialogue, meaning ideas are honestly explored and improved upon. People will voice ideas they may otherwise have kept to themselves, and are able to try new things without being afraid to fail. Without the ability to try and fail, some potentially creative and useful concepts would never come to life.
Sounds good yes, but how do we get this psychological safety? There are some general concepts that will support the fostering of a psychologically safe environment (This article, along with the Gallup report will provide a more in-depth discussion if you want to read it):
- Use conflict as an opportunity to collaborate for a win-win, rather than fighting for a win-lose.
- Be honest about your limitations, and what you do not know.
- Ensure everyone understands why their role matters to the organization. Knowing they are necessary increases the likelihood of people speaking up.
- Remember we are all human, with hopes, anxieties, a need for appreciation and respect, and vulnerabilities.
- Encourage curiosity instead of blame. Why did something go wrong, and what can we do better next time?
- Measure psychological safety. This allows you to see how you are progressing and if you and your employees view the environment the same way.
Unfortunately it doesn’t happen overnight, but as leadership remains open and trust is built among individuals and teams on a daily basis, the environment you build will be so worth it.