Psychological safety
Psychological safety is the shared belief that in an environment one can speak honestly, question, report mistakes, and take interpersonal risks without humiliation or punishment.
Definition
Psychological safety is particularly important in learning teams, relationships and organizations. It does not mean comfort at any cost or lack of demands. Rather, it means the conditions under which a person can admit ignorance, error, or doubt without fear of humiliation. Thanks to this, the quality of feedback, cooperation and joint problem solving increases.
Key ideas
- Interpersonal risk
- Learning from mistakes
- Honesty without humiliation
Practice and life
In a meeting, start by asking: "What are we not seeing yet?" and clearly thank them for pointing out the risk or error. This way you reinforce speaking about facts and not hiding problems.
Common misconceptions
It is a mistake to confuse psychological safety with always being nice. It is also a mistake to use it as an excuse for responsibility, standards and difficult conversations.
> Where the truth can be spoken without fear, learning begins.
> — Guru Element
Questions for self-reflection
- Is it possible to admit a mistake in this environment?
- What happens to a person who tells an uncomfortable truth?
- How can I reinforce honesty without punishing openness?