Helping leaders make employees feel ‘psychologically safe’

The concept of “psychological safety” has taken off in recent years for organizations that want to improve employee well-being and performance.

It’s commonly used to describe what is missing for employees who face discrimination and microaggressions in the workplace on issues like race and gender, but it actually applies to the full employee experience with leaders within an organization, and is deeply tied to other factors like “trust” and “employee engagement” which move the needle for so many these days.

In a Harvard Business Review report, psychological safety is defined as the belief that you won’t be “punished when you make a mistake.” Studies have shown that employees who feel empowered to take risks are more likely to deliver results—and in the months of crisis after COVID-19, psychological safety also offers positives like employees who are more resilient and open-minded.