Written by: Dave Sewell, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Psychological safety is the belief that one will not be punished or humiliated for speaking up with ideas, questions, concerns or mistakes. It is a shared belief held by members of a team that the team is safe for interpersonal risk-taking.
Workplace psychological safety has become increasingly important in today's business world as it has been shown to lead to improved performance, increased productivity, and higher employee engagement. These advantages can lead to a more successful and profitable organization.
One of the key advantages of psychological safety is improved performance. When team members feel safe to share their ideas, they are more likely to come forward with creative solutions and new ways of thinking. This leads to a more diverse set of ideas and perspectives, which in turn leads to more innovative and effective solutions. Additionally, team members who feel safe to speak up are more likely to share concerns or potential problems early on, which allows teams to address issues before they become major problems.
In addition to improved performance, psychological safety leads to increased productivity. When team members feel safe, they are more likely to take ownership of their work and are more motivated to put in extra effort. This leads to a higher level of commitment and a more engaged workforce. Team members who feel safe also tend to be more open to constructive feedback, which allows for faster learning and development. This not only leads to personal growth but also helps organizations in developing their employees which in turn helps the company.
Moreover, psychological safety leads to a more positive and satisfying work environment. When team members feel safe to be themselves, they are more likely to enjoy their work and form stronger connections with their colleagues. This leads to increased employee engagement and job satisfaction, which in turn leads to lower turnover rates. Additionally, a positive work environment can lead to improved employee morale, which can have a positive impact on organizational culture.
Creating a psychologically safe work environment is not only beneficial for employees but also beneficial for the organization as a whole. When employees feel safe, they are more likely to communicate openly and honestly with their colleagues and managers. This leads to a more transparent and open work culture, which can improve decision-making, reduce conflict, and increase trust. This improves the overall efficiency of the organization.
Promoting psychological safety is essential to the success of any team or organization. To do so, companies need to take active steps to promote a culture of safety and respect. This can include:
Encouraging open and honest communication
Providing training on communication and teamwork
Encouraging team-building activities
Holding regular team meetings to discuss progress and issues
Making managers more approachable and available to team members
Recognizing and rewarding open communication and risk-taking
Give everyone permission to hold each other accountable for behaviours that don’t make others feel safe.
Promoting psychological safety can also involve creating systems to encourage and support open communication. For example, providing anonymous feedback channels and regularly soliciting input from team members can help to create a culture where people feel comfortable speaking up.
In conclusion, psychological safety is a key factor in the success of any team or organization. When team members feel safe to share their ideas and concerns, they are more likely to be creative, productive, and engaged. This leads to improved performance, increased productivity, and a more positive work environment. By actively promoting psychological safety, companies can create a more successful and profitable organization. It is important for organizations to understand the need and importance of psychological safety and take steps to promote it.
Dave Sewell, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
“Every child deserves a home where they feel safe and loved.”
This is what drives Dave Sewell’s research and approach to executive education and facilitation.
Sewell’s own life story has led him to question everything he understood about leadership, from the beatings and shame from his own father to the near-complete psychological breakdown at the hands of a ruthless Area Manager in his early twenties. The question burning inside him, “Why do people behave this way?” and “How do we change this?”.
Sewell’s research built a deep understanding of human behavior and our need to feel physically and psychologically safe. None of us are at our best when we are under continued levels of stress beyond what we can comfortably cope with. It is when we are in this space that we are often not helpful to others, indeed we can be quite uncivil, causing us to be more aloof, more confrontational, and less tolerant of others.
No one wants to be this person in the workplace or this type of parent when we get home, but it is all too common.
Having published the learning of his research in his book Safe Leadership – beating stress to drive performance, Sewell is on a mission to make more workplaces psychologically safer so that every worker can go home with enough emotional and mental capacity to spend quality time with their family, creating that psychologically safe space in the home. He does this through a series of leadership workshops, a longitudinal program, and one on one executive coaching.
