Low Psychological Safety - 8 Signs You Might Miss

There is a lot of talk around the concept of Psychological Safety and the common signs are typically well known. That said a lack of safety could be, and probably is, showing up in far more subtle ways that are just as important for leaders to catch.

Missing the signs can result in losing your best people, missing key opportunities, declining culture and reputation, issues attracting future talent and more.

Here are eight of the more subtle signs to look for in your organization or team when thinking about psychological safety:

1. Lack of Risk-Taking

You need innovative solutions, or just solutions, but your people consistently choose only the safe and conventional approaches. Trying something new just never seems to happen, probably because it just seems too risky.

Impact: Creativity is dying and the organizations ability to adapt to change or seize new opportunities fades.

2. Surface-Level Compliance

Your people are following the rules and processes to the letter, no questions, every box is checked. They are Process Obsessed and value seems like a distant second.

Impact: Your people are losing sight of the value your customers need. Critical thinking, like any muscle, is atrophying resulting in rigidity when you need agility.

3. Social Exclusion and Cliques

You can see a clear division in you people, maybe it’s the old-timers and the new-guys or maybe it’s the in-crowd and everyone else… But there are clear lines forming and it’s damaging the teams ability to collaborate and work together as well as causing some to feel isolated.

Impact: Trust and belonging will decline which will in turn lead to declines in productivity and even retention. Before long this can even damage you company culture and/or morale.

4. Passive-Aggressive Behavior

Disagreement or dissatisfaction is being expressed indirectly through behaviors like procrastination, sarcasm, backhanded comments, or even the dreaded silent treatment. The one thing that isn’t happening is open and constructive conversations.

Impact: This passive-aggressive behavior is creating a toxic environment that continually makes it harder for anyone to have a constructive conversation. Unresolved issues are piling up, leading to more unresolved conflicts and tension.

5. Lack of Initiative

If you don’t ask for it, it doesn’t happen. If it’s not in the job description, it’s not getting done. Your people are playing it safe by doing their best to play within the rules and (possibly) go unnoticed.

Impact: Stagnation, both organizationally and for your people’s career. Growth in general seems to be on hold and while things may not be degrading (yet) they definitely are not improving.

6. High Turnover

People are leaving. This may be localized to specific teams or departments, or it may be for your whole organization as compared to your industry. Often times this is due to a toxic leader or dysfunctional team, regardless, psychological safety is suffering.

Impact: You’re spending on average $30-$60k to replace each person that leaves. Your most talented people are also usually the ones to leave first resulting in “brain drain”. In the long run this will damage your culture, your ability to deliver, and your reputation.

7. Anonymous or No Feedback

No one wants their name attached to feedback so they are only willing to provide it when it can be done anonymously. Worse yet, you may not be getting any feedback at all.

Impact: Your people do not feel safe to speak up and as a result are working hard to make sure problems are swept under the rug rather than aired in the light of day. Your organization and leaders have not built the trust needed to facilitate constructive feedback channels.

8. Excessive Formality in Communication

Everything from conversations to emails are overly formal and the casual or spontaneous interactions we engage in as humans seem to be avoided. People are weighing every word and working to make sure it is safe first and productive second.

Impact: Open dialogue is stifled and your people are exerting a lot of time and energy to staying “safe”. Your people are possibly feeling overly scrutinized and may worry and wrong word will lead to unpleasant consequences.

There is still hope!

If you’re seeing these signs in your organization or team, it’s not too late! There are steps you can take as a leaders and as an organization to start turning the ship and promoting a more psychologically safe environment.

As a Leader

First and foremost, lead by example!

• Show vulnerability in the form of discussing your mistakes and what you learned from them.
• Ask for help, actively listen and collaborate, and then act on the discussion.
• Be open about what you don’t know as well as all the things you do know.
• Actively solicit feedback, stay curious and listen, act on the feedback and follow up.

Your openness and vulnerability will inspire others to follow, but you can also take it a step further by:

• Celebrating failures and the resulting learnings
• Creating collaborative spaces where your team can have input
• Encourage and even facilitate more direct and open dialogue
• Empower your people through delegation of authority

As an Organization

Leadership will lead the charge, but as an organization there are additional steps you can take

• Investigate turnover trends through exit interviews anonymous surveys to understand and address root causes
• Provide training and coaching for leaders and individuals on emotional intelligence, handling conflict, crucial conversations, and more
• Establish empowered Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) and support them
• Establish and follow a clear vision and company values

By addressing these subtler signs, leaders can create a more supportive and psychologically safe workplace, leading to higher engagement, better performance, and improved overall well-being for their employees.