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Stretch

Over the past few months, I’ve seen an unsettling trend around the use of the term “psychological safety,” particularly on various social media platforms. I’ve observed many people, often not in social justice, mental health, or DEI spaces, attempting to distill psychological safety down in the content they create and positioning it as something that individual managers and employees have the power to build within organizations they may work in.

Before we dive into where I think this term is being misused, let’s define it. Popularized by Harvard professor and author Amy Edmondson, the term psychological safety is defined as, “…the belief that you won’t be punished or humiliated for speaking up with ideas, questions, or mistakes. Team members’ shared expectation at work is that their coworkers won’t humiliate, reject, or punish them for sharing ideas, taking risks, or asking for feedback.”

Psychological safety is not about being nice to each other all the time, but rather that you feel the ability to articulate half-baked thoughts, openly disagree with one another, and openly challenge the status quo in your team and organization. In short, it creates a foundational environment where we can truly be open and express ourselves without fear of reprisal.

You might wonder why I’m so focused on psychological safety in the first place. I strongly believe that psychological safety is the foundation for creating an inclusive and equitable environment where diversity can thrive. If we tell people that they should come to work and bring their “authentic selves,” but then we ridicule, punish, or ostracize them for sharing their honesty with us, that sentiment is inauthentic and lacks integrity. It also shuts down the potential for diverse perspectives to converge with one another to create, innovate, and generate revolutionary ideas that are not only financially lucrative but strengthen company brand, culture, and go-to-market products.

Unfortunately, I think this term is being misused by many creators on social media. Having spent the majority of my DEI career leading initiatives and efforts that impact companies at scale, I take a different position. I believe that your commitment to building psychologically safe teams and environments starts with your C-Suite. 

Many organizations claim they are committed to psychologically safe environments, only to dish out punitive action or some form of retribution against those who speak against the status quo, voice concerns, or express open disagreement. More often than not, the people who face this punitive action tend to identify as members of underrepresented or marginalized communities.

In hierarchal organizations, C-Suites play a critical role in determining the cultural tone of an organization, and if they expect psychological safety to be a bedrock of their culture, they have to be willing to walk the walk.

What does it look like when the C-Suite is willing to do this? Here are a few examples:

• Developing a deep understanding of psychological safety and how you integrate it into organizational culture.

• Speaking up when they see principles of psychological safety not being honored in real-time.

• Committing to and practicing psychological safety principles themselves; do their direct reports feel psychologically safe with them?

• Enshrining policies that reinforce the commitment to fostering an environment of psychological safety for all employees.

• Training all people leaders on how to cascade this commitment and practices of psychological safety onto their teams.

Critics of this mindset may say that placing the responsibility of establishing psychological safety as a cultural norm on the C-Suite is too great a burden.

My pushback to that line of thinking is that C-Suites in exchange for robust compensation packages, hierarchal positionality, and a significant share of organizational power. They agree to the roles they step into. With that is the expectation that they are up to the task of leading organizations through cultural transformations such as this. If they can launch multi-million dollar products and strategies, they can also take the time to invest in their culture so that very innovation can thrive with integrity.

Reflect

1. Do you feel comfortable voicing your opinions or concerns without fear of negative consequences in your workplace?

2. Does your leadership both in your team and organization encourage open dialogue, especially around challenging topics?

3. Do you feel that everyone, regardless of their background or position, is treated with respect and inclusion in your team and organization?

Act

1. Speak Up Against Toxicity: Address any behaviors or practices that undermine psychological safety, whether through informal conversations or formal channels.

2. Champion Leadership Training: Advocate for training programs that equip people leaders with skills to promote and maintain psychological safety within their teams and across the organization.

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