Empowering Safety, Diminishing Stress: The Importance of Psychological Safety

Cortisol.

The hormone that can spur us into action–that triggers fight or flight–shouldn’t reside in our bodies for an extended amount of time.

Because this heightened state of stress wreaks havoc on your overall health.

Yet, we have workplaces where employees are often in survivor mode because they have viewed their work environment as unsafe.

Psychological safety is the belief that one will not be punished or humiliated for speaking up or making mistakes. Dr. Timothy R. Clark, the author of The 4 Stages of Psychological Safety, defines a psychologically safe workplace as a culture of rewarded vulnerability.

The question is, who gets to be vulnerable??

Who gets to be authentic??

Who gets to be safe??

If you are a people leader, you may think that everyone who reports to you feels safe–but what if they don’t?

Did that rattle you a little? Good.

Sometimes we need a good rattling to keep us from being complacent. Don’t worry. I got you.

Let’s take this time to use our emotional intelligence to process these questions.

Now stay with me here.?

Good leaders are always looking for ways to improve. And one of those ways is by elevating their emotional intelligence. Practicing its competencies allows you to lean into the discomfort that may arise when you are posed with a question like, “Does everyone who reports to you feel safe?” It also encourages you to be more curious and ask more questions so you can be more socially aware.

You aren’t always going to get it right. And that’s okay. However, once you are aware, you do have the responsibility to make it right.

And, you know what? You may not even be the reason why your employees feel unsafe. Perhaps you have a blind spot as to who or what it is.

In exercising your self-awareness, take a moment to access what members of your team you find it easier to connect with. What fosters that ease? Now consider the team members who connecting with may be more challenging. Are there certain traits or commonalities that you can identify?

Now let’s utilize our social awareness and read the room. In your next team meeting, simply observe how your team communicates with each other. Who’s connecting with whom? Is there engagement? Pay attention to tone, body language, and facial expressions. Are the same members vocal? Does everyone participate? Is it quiet, or are folks being too agreeable? As you reflect, do you notice a pattern??

We often gravitate to people we like or tend to relate to. It’s natural. It’s not inherently good or bad, however, if it creates exclusion and othering, then now it’s a bad thing because it causes harm.

Discrimination and bias based on an employee’s race, gender, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, disability, size, or other personal characteristics, create a sense of exclusion and marginalization. This leads to stress and other mental health issues. Some employees may experience symptoms of depression, anxiety, and burnout, while others experience physical health problems like headaches and digestive issues.?

The racial battle fatigue, emotional tax, and exhaustion that stems from hiding/masking/code-switching in places that do not address the harassment, bullying, derogatory comments, slurs, and other aggressions, are real. Then add denied opportunities for advancement, or when promoted, the process is longer and without equitable pay, along with being overlooked for important projects and initiatives, these issues negatively impact employees’ well-being.?

There’s a reason why many women, Black and ethnically marginalized employees, and those with disabilities are either likely to switch jobs or prefer to work remotely.?

According to Lean In’s?Women in the Workplace Study 2022 :

• Only 1 in 10 women want to work mostly on-site, and many women point to remote and hybrid work options as one of their top reasons for joining or staying with an organization.
• Women of color and women with disabilities are about 1.5X as likely to experience demeaning and “othering” microaggressions when they work mostly on-site as opposed to mostly remotely.

A lack of psychological safety can lead to a culture of fear and intimidation. This type of work environment can cause significant stress, feelings of helplessness, low self-esteem, and a sense of being trapped in an unsafe work environment.

Some signs that your team or workplace is psychologically unsafe:

• Employees are afraid to speak up
• There are meetings after the meetings
• Reduced collaboration and communication
• Increased “sick days”

Employees also are more likely to experience burnout. When employees don’t feel safe expressing their concerns or asking for help, they may work longer hours and take on more responsibilities.

So back to my earlier question as it relates to you being aware of yourself and “reading the room” (social awareness) – who gets to be safe?

To access psychological safety and improve morale and well-being within your team starts with you.

Yep! You!

• Begin with an honest conversation with yourself regarding potential biases. We all have them. There are certain personalities or characteristics that we are drawn to or feel more comfortable with.
• Ask for feedback. But before you do that, check yourself first! How have you responded to feedback in the past? You may find that although asking for feedback is essential to more accurate self-awareness, if you shut folks down, get defensive, dismiss, deny, and deflect, then more than likely, you haven’t created a psychologically safe environment for feedback to be given and received. Need some help in this area? Check out?this post .
• Practice being more observant. Whether in team meetings or other social encounters with employees, pay attention to what is said, what isn’t said, tone, and energy.?
• Model high emotional intelligence and address low-EQ (i.e. belittling, gossip, slander, microaggressions, passive-aggressiveness, etc.). Your employees are watching. They’re making note as to what is tolerated and what isn’t.

Overall, a lack of psychological safety can have a significant impact on employee mental health. And as a leader, you play a significant role in lowering the threat threshold of your team. It’s crucial for organizations to foster a culture of psychological safety where employees feel comfortable expressing themselves, asking for help, and sharing their thoughts and concerns without fear of judgment or negative consequences. And it takes the emotional intelligence of leaders to help cultivate this sense of belonging.

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The well-being of employees is my highest priority, and I hope it’s yours!

One way that we at WorkingWell Daily support employees is through our engaging professional trainings. Topics include psychological safety, emotional intelligence, belonging and well-being.

Additionally, we offer opportunities to become a Thought Partner with you. Sometimes you just need to get a different perspective and a listening ear. Whether it be an acute challenge or ongoing advisement, we are here to help.

If you are interested in bringing one of our trainings to your organization or bringing us in as a Thought Partner to consult, email us at [email protected].

I'M TAKING A BREAK

My debut book,?The Color of Emotional Intelligence: Elevating Our Self and Social Awareness to Address Inequities , officially launches on May 30th!

In?honor of practicing what I teach, I'll be taking the month of June to celebrate, rest and implement a post-launch well-being plan—this includes taking a break from writing our bi-weekly newsletters.?

I may pop into your inbox if there's something that I feel I must share (like reminding you to purchase my book ??). We'll be back to regular programming come July.

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