Pernilla Stenström shares her best tips for leaders who want to promote psychological safety:
- Listen with an open mind. Never assume that you know best, but ask for and consider others' perspectives.
- De-dramatise mistakes so that you can talk openly about them. Integrate mistakes into learning.
- Let go of power structures and meet everyone as equals.
"Often, you don't need to make big changes. Small changes are often successful enough," she says.
Discuss mistakes openly
Psychological safety in workplaces and within workgroups is, according to research, an environment where employees feel safe that their and others' initiatives are welcomed, where everyone can express their own thoughts and suggestions to move the work forward, and where no one needs to be on guard against insults, attacks, or having something hidden from them.
"In an environment with psychological safety, mistakes are de-dramatised and can be openly discussed. In a group with psychological safety, employees can calmly have differing opinions. Friction between people is not seen as threatening," says Pernilla Stenström.
Positive engagement and increased productivity
Research shows that trust and safety make us happier, healthier, and more engaged. There are also studies showing that safety increases our learning, and that groups where members describe psychological safety get more done. According to other research, positive engagement leads to increased productivity.
"Our efficiency simply increases with safety. To achieve psychological safety, it is important that mistakes are neither punished nor swept under the rug, but integrated into the group's learning. So if employees are afraid of making mistakes, leadership has more to gain."
