What psychological safety at work is NOT

For some years, when talking about talent management, we also talk about the concept “psychological safety”. What does this term refer to? It is the environment where team members feel safe to be themselves, with the freedom to question the the status quo and give your point of view, as well as having the confidence to make mistakes and the freedom to experiment and innovate, assuming the risks that this entails.

promote the psychological safety it is for many organizations the way to survive or prosper, becoming more agile and more innovative, or to improve the experience of their customers. Many companies that are immersed in this change are doing everything technically possible to get in shape through changes in culture, training, technological renovations, new work methodologies and creating spaces for innovation.

Those companies that have carried it out successfully have managed to boost their growth, customer satisfaction, profitability, etc. But in addition to financial and market success, they have one achievement in common: they changed the mentality of their teams and the culture of the organization, introducing new beliefs and new behaviors that the company demands. new organizational context.

This is where psychological safety comes into play. This safe environment not only helps people feel engaged in their work, it also promotes high performance equipment through the generation of trust, diversity of thought and the freedom to express oneself without fear of being singled out, punished or judged.

This generates great benefits and promotes innovation in organizations, increases creativity, causes changes in leadership and decision-making. That is, with a safe environment it is possible to achieve behaviors that really promote transformation and innovation.

But all change involves some effort, and this kind of working models it also implies challenges, although they seem simple concepts and easy to implement. I mean, what can go wrong? It just has to do with giving feedback, being all friends, and treating each other well. Or not?

The reality is that they are profound changes in mentality and behavior that organizations sometimes have deeply rooted. This is why I would like to point out some of the most common mistakes that can be committed when trying to introduce these concepts in the organization.

We can define what psychological safety is not considering the following points:

» 1. Psychological security has nothing to do with increasing the fragility of people, on the contrary, it is reinforcing their security and their competence. It is not having “diplomatic immunity” to excuse that one did not deliver results. In fact, psychologically safe environments promote objective measurement of results and accountability to adjust or refine the course and guarantee the achievement of objectives.

» 2. It also has nothing to do with false tolerance or harmony in the face of non-compliance, or avoiding making difficult decisions or avoiding difficult discussions. It has to do with promoting open and direct conversations to address issues that must be addressed to generate improvements and generate constructive feedback on a frequent basis.

» 3. It is not about providing excessive autonomy or taking it for granted when it has not been earned by the person. In safe environments, the autonomy it is gained through competence acquired through training or experience. And this autonomy is distributed naturally the more mature the teams become.

» 4. Psychological safety also has nothing to do with making consensual decisions, where everyone has to agree or where collegiate decisions are made. Conversely, in the most secure environments there is a leadership that guides and promotes everyone’s opinion, but the decision is made by the person in charge through clear and efficient processes, eliminating bureaucracy.

» 5. Lastly, and very importantly, for a safe environment to really exist, the discourse of the leaders or the Human Resources areas is not enough; psychological safety must be lived and modeled with the day to day behaviors.

Finally, to start working on the psychological safety of your team, the most important thing is to take the first step. It starts with small actions, such as provoking conversations between the leader and the collaborator in which the effort, work and dedication are appreciated or providing timely feedback when something has not gone well.

These small changes will demonstrate the real interest in generating an environment of open communication where opinions can be shared. After all, who doesn’t like to feel included? It’s about knowing that your opinion is valued, that your voice is heard, that you can be yourself and still be a part of something.

*The opinions expressed here represent the vision of the author and do not imply a position of Prosa.