“There’s no team without trust,” believes Paul Santagata, head of industry at Google.
Extensive research on team performance, conducted by Google for two years, showed that the most successful teams have one thing in common: psychological safety. It’s the awareness that you won’t be punished for your mistake. Psychological safety allows for moderate risks, people are more willing to express their opinions and their creativity and expose themselves without fear of encountering criticism. Such an atmosphere in the work environment is supposed to lead to business breakthroughs.
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Evolutionary aspect of psychological safety
The reason why psychological safety is key to success in uncertain, interconnected environments can be found in evolutionary adaptation. The brain accepts the provocation of a boss, a competitive colleague, or a pessimistic subordinate as a threat as if it were a matter of life or death. The amygdala, which acts as a kind of alarm bell in the brain, triggers a response in us: fight or flight. Thus, the “act first think later” mentality prevails in the brain, and with that, analytical judgment and different perspectives recede into the background.
In such situations instinct takes the initiative when we should be using the brain the most. Although such a reaction often saves us in critical life situations, such as when we see a train
rushing towards us, it slows down strategic thinking, which is necessary for modern work environments.
Finding the guilty one, blaming, and constantly criticizing employees reduce their sense of psychological safety.
In the 21st century, business success depends on a completely different system – it is a way of positive “expansion and construction” thinking that allows us to solve complex problems and sustain an environment of cooperation. Positive emotions such as trust, curiosity, confidence, and inspiration broaden horizons and help build psychological, social, and physical resources, says Barbara Fredrickson of the University of North Carolina.
When we feel safe, we become more open, resistant to criticism, motivated, and consistent. Humor within the team increases, as well as finding solutions and divergent thinking – a cognitive process in which we develop various ideas and on which creativity is based.
When we look at our job as a challenge, not a threat, teams can maintain such a way of work (the “expanding and building”). The level of the hormone oxytocin in our brain rises, which evokes confidence and also a behavior that inspires confidence. “In Google’s fast-paced and extremely demanding environment, success is based on the ability to take risks and be vulnerable towards co-workers,” Santagata claims.
How do we increase psychological safety in a team?
So psychological safety is key to a strong team, but how do we achieve and strengthen it in our organizational teams? Santagata advises us to follow in his suggestions:
- We approach conflict as an ally, not as an opponent.
People don’t like to lose, but we love to win. If someone in the team feels like he or she lost, this feeling trigger attempts to re-establish equity through competition, criticism, or self-exclusion, which is a form of helplessness in the workplace. Santagata knows that true success is one in which we all have the feeling that we are winners. He, therefore, advises that when conflicts arise, we try to avoid situations that provoke a “fight or flight” reaction. We can help ourselves with this question: “How can we achieve the desired result for everyone?”
- Talk to a person like a human.
Behind the quarrels in the team are universal human needs such as respect, competence, social status, and autonomy. Recognizing these needs helps us build trust and encourages positive attitudes and behavior. Santagata reminds his team that even in the strongest disputes, the other side has the same goal: just like themselves, they want to leave the situation satisfied. His formula “Just like me” teaches employees that in intense situations to always think of the following:
- This person has their own beliefs, their perspective of the situation, and their own opinion. Just like me.
- This person has hopes, worries and vulnerabilities. Just like me.
- This person has friends, family and maybe children they love. Just like me.
- This person wants to be respected, valued and competent. Just like me.
- This person wants peace, joy and happiness. Just like me.
If you think you already know what the other person is going to say, then you are not ready to talk.
- Expect responses and plan countermeasures.
“Thinking in advance how the audience will respond to your messages can help ensure that your content is heard, as opposed to an audience hearing only an attack on their identity and ego,” Santagata explains.
Deftly engage in difficult conversations straightforward, preparing for their possible responses. You may need to gather concrete evidence to be able to challenge your defensive stance while discussing hot issues. “What are the likely objections if I present my position in this way, and how will I respond to these counter-arguments? Looking at the debate from this third perspective reveals weaknesses in my views and encourages me to reconsider the argument,” Santagata says. He, therefore, advises to ask ourselves:
- What are my main points?
- What are the three most likely responses I can expect?
- How will I respond to each of these scenarios?
- Replace accusation with curiosity.
If team members feel you want to blame them for something, you become their attacking tiger. Research by John Gottman of the University of Washington has shown that accusations and criticism reliably escalate pressure, leading employees to a defensive stance and – eventually – withdrawal. Curiosity, on the other hand, has the exact opposite effect of accusation. If you think you already know what the other person is going to say, then you are not ready to talk. Instead, be open to learning being aware you don’t know all the facts. Here’s how to do it:
- Present the problematic behavior or result as an observation, using clear, neutral language. For example: “In the last two months, you have noticeably stopped attending meetings and I noticed you progress on your project too slow.“
- Invite them in research. You can say, “I imagine there are a lot of factors at play. Maybe we could identify them together?“
- Ask for solutions. The people responsible for creating a problem usually also have the key to the solution. Therefore, a positive solution usually depends on their ideas. Ask directly, “What do you think should happen now? What would be the ideal scenario for you? How can I support you?“
- Ask for a response to your words.
By asking for a response to your speech, you will disarm your opponent, highlight weak points in your communication skills, show that you can be wrong, which in turn only increases confidence in the leader. Santagata always concludes difficult conversations with these questions:
- What worked and what didn’t in my speech?
- How did you feel when you listened to it?
- How could I say this more effectively?
Santagata cited as an example the event when he had to rebuke a senior leader. After criticism, he asked him about his response to what was said. The senior manager replied, “It could hurt like a big blow but you presented good evidence and so I wanted to hear more. Besides, you were willing to talk about the challenges I faced, which led to solutions.”
- Monitor psychological safety.
Santagata regularly asks his team how safe they feel and what could further enhance their sense of security. In addition to that, they regularly conduct surveys on psychological safety and other dynamics within the team. One of the questions they ask in these questionnaires is, “How confident are you that you won’t be punished or criticized for admitting your mistake or making one?”
If you establish psychological safety in your team, you can expect to soon perceive greater engagement, increased motivation to tackle difficult tasks, more opportunities for learning and development, and greater performance.
Dr. Sabina Đuvelek