Common Psychological Safety Mistakes Leaders Make And How to Fix Them

Imagine this. Fertile soil vs barren soil.

Fertile soil provides nutrients for growth and flourishing.

Barren soil lacks nutrients and stifles growth, so much so that most seedlings can’t make it above ground. 

Using this common metaphor, you can think of psychological safety as fertile soil that allows companies to reach their full potential, with employees who are engaged, work together, and are not afraid to share their ideas or worries. By focusing on psychological safety, organizations can ensure that all employees, regardless of their background or identity, feel included and valued, and the company has a productive, beautifully diverse, ever-growing garden .

In today's increasingly demanding workplaces, psychological safety is a key element for successful organizations. Amy C. Edmondson, author, and the woman who coined the term, describes it as “an environment where people can freely express themselves without fear of negative consequences.”

So, with psychological safety being such a hot topic, do you want to know if you have Fertile Soil or Barren Soil?

Here are 9 Signs you might not be fostering Psychological Safety and how to fix them.

1.     Closed Communication: If your employees don't feel comfortable openly expressing their thoughts and ideas, or you find yourself or team involved in “back door convos”, your team does not feel psychologically safe.

Fix: Leaders should actively seek input from team members, create regular forums for discussion, and a space for anonymity if necessary. Invest time in training or resources for effective communication skills to ensure that all team members feel empowered to express their thoughts and ideas without fear of judgment.

2.     Disregarding Upwards Feedback: If you’re perceived as dismissive of feedback from your team, you're probably making them feel unheard, undervalued, and uncollaborative. This discourages open dialogue, reduces your credibility, and stifles innovation.

Fix: Solicit and Act on Feedback: Leaders should make it a point to regularly ask for feedback from their teams, respond positively, and take action. When team members see that their suggestions make a difference, they feel valued and shows that the organization is committed to getting better all the time. This is especially important for GenZ, women, and marginalized communities who bring unique perspectives to the table.

3.     Lack of Investment in Employee Development & Feedback: If you are not providing regular feedback or offering guidance for improvement, not only are you not getting the performance results needed from your team members, but you may leave them feeling uncertain about their own performance, and surprised at quarterly or annual reviews.

Fix: Prioritize Regular Feedback and Development Opportunities: Establish a structured feedback system with regular check-ins to discuss performance and provide guidance. Implement ongoing professional development opportunities to empower employees to enhance their skills. For instance, schedule monthly one-on-one feedback sessions, help them find a mentor that aligns with their development goals, or create a pathway to skills courses. This ensures you’re aligned on expectations, reduces uncertainty, and creates an environment where team members feel supported and empowered to contribute their best work.

4.     Avoiding Vulnerability: If you're not showing your own vulnerability, you're likely creating a culture where employees feel they must be perfect. This can lead to a fear of making mistakes and a reluctance to take risks, which are crucial for innovation, creating solutions, and improvement in skills of your teammates.

Fix: Model Vulnerability: When leaders share their own hurdles, it makes a safe space for everyone else to do the same. This honesty can help create real connection within the team, where no one's scared to own up to mistakes (aka learning opportunities) or ask for help. Remember teamwork begins by building trust, the only way to do that is to overcome our need for invulnerability.

5.     Lack of Collaboration: If you're not including all viewpoints and contributions from team members in projects and decision-making processes, you're probably making certain employees feel undervalued and even marginalized. Leaders who ignore or dismiss ideas and contributions of team members create an environment where people hesitate to share their thoughts, fearing rejection or ridicule.

Fix: Be Inclusive with Projects & Decision-Making: This is a powerful way to show you trust in your team's abilities and perspectives. When employees feel their opinions shape outcomes, they’re more likely to take ownership of their work and feel connected to the success of the organization. This sense of belonging increases motivation and a willingness to contribute innovative ideas.

6.    Neglecting Employee Well-being: If you're not prioritizing mental health and well-being of your employees, you're likely creating a stressful and unsafe work environment. This is particularly important for GenZ employees who are more likely to seek out employers that care about their well-being, and frankly, its such a relevant and important topic, if you don’t take it seriously you’re likely to lose the forward-thinking creativity that comes along with this generation of diverse talent.

Fix: Develop Empathy, Be Understanding: Provide flexible work arrangements whenever possible. Show genuine empathy by acknowledging and validating team members' professional and personal challenges and take applicable action to prove your support.

7.    Fostering Fear: If employees are afraid to share ideas, feel unsupported by their leaders, fear they don't provide value, or are concerned for job security, it can create an environment of fear and uncertainty, leading to stress, decreased productivity, and a breakdown in communication. Fear also shows up when leaders set unrealistic expectations or goals without providing necessary resources or support. Team members become afraid to admit they’re struggling, because they fear repercussions.

Fix: Foster a Culture of Support and Realistic Expectations: Assure employees of their value, and address concerns about job security through transparent communication. Set realistic goals by aligning expectations with available resources and support. For example, in your 1 on 1’s discuss workload and offer assistance, creating a space where team members feel comfortable admitting challenges without fear of negative consequences.

8.    Dislike or Distrust of Teammates: Micromanagement : Constantly monitoring and controlling every aspect of team members' work, sends a message that the leader doesn't trust the team's abilities and makes them feel stifled and discouraged. Blame, where mistakes are punished rather than treated as learning opportunities, and can lead to a fear of taking risks, inhibiting creativity and innovation. Lastly, favoritism and not acknowledging successes can demotivate members.

Fix: Flip the Script, Create a Positive Team Culture: Empower team members by providing clear expectations and guidelines, allowing autonomy in their work. Encourage a learning and improvement culture where you shift the concept of “mistakes” or “failures” to “learning opportunities”. Hold regular team discussions on lessons learned, fostering mindsets of continuous growth. Recognize and celebrate achievements and ensure successes are acknowledged publicly. Address any perception of favoritism by creating equal opportunities for growth and acknowledgment. For example, establish a rotating system for assigning leadership roles in projects to showcase diverse talents and contributions. This encourages risk-taking, and boosts overall morale.

9. Fostering Unhealthy Competition: If you are pitting your teammates against each other, you are likely creating unhealthy competition. This breeds toxicity, unproductive relationship dynamics, disrupts team cohesion, and instills fear and insecurity among teammates, even top performers. If the competition you are creating is for your benefit or short-term gain (ex. putting multiple people on fire drills for speed or dangling promotions to increase temporary performance) this erodes trust and unity. Doing this repetitively guarantees burnout and has a detrimental impact on long-term motivation.

Fix: Shift from Cutthroat to Collective Growth: Stop cutthroat mentality by focusing on collective growth instead of individual rivalry. Instead of head-to-head competitions, leverage collaboration and joint efforts, allowing the team to flex its teamwork muscle. This is especially important when quick decision-making is frequent. This approach ensures comprehensive problem-solving and prevents important details from slipping through the cracks. Promote a culture where success is measured not just by personal achievements but also by the synergy of the team, reinforcing the significance of mutual support.

In addition to the common pitfalls & fixes above,
here are a few foundational ways to foster psychological safety.

Bolster Your Active Listening Skills

Listening attentively, without distraction, and hearing what is both spoken and unspoken. By truly understanding what their team members are saying and responding in an inquisitive and thoughtful way, Leaders model empathy and show that they value their team's thought contributions, regardless of whether it is people or project related. 

Show Engagement and Presence

Leaders need to be ‘in it’ when they're with their team. Things like looking people in the eye, not checking your laptop, and not letting things distract you during meetings, can make a big difference. When team members see their leaders engaged, they feel respected heard, and safe to speak up. This is especially important for GenZ, women, and marginalized communities who might not always feel heard.

Advocate for Your Team, Peers, and Partners

Advocacy in the workplace is such a powerful tool if you want foster psychological safety and is particularly important with GenZ, women, and marginalized communities. Stand up for your team, peers, and partners. Fight for their feelings of balance, inclusion, validation, security, and recognition. By advocating for others, you demonstrate respect for their ideas, contributions, performance, and feelings, which can help to create an environment where everyone feels safe to express themselves. This is helpful for the individuals, and drives collective success of the organization

When people feel safe they do their best work, which is good for them, great for you, and supports the goals of the organization. So practice these tips each day, and little by little, they will become natural behaviors. Create the soil where your teams can thrive and continue to grow.

If you need help with any of the recommendations above, book a consultation with me so we can get started on your journey to becoming the respected Leader your team members want, and you deserve to be!