You have a great job. You work for a great company. But you never put your hand up in a meeting with your suggestions because you are scared of how your colleagues will react.
Is your team a safe place to share ideas and make suggestions, and is each individual valued for what they bring to the table? This is probably something that you have never considered until now, but companies are finding great value in using a psychological safety quiz.
Psychological safety in the workplace must be cultivated. While the basics of it may be somewhat unknown, it is the core of business growth and untapped potential.
Let’s explore what to look for in your team, and how to cultivate psychological safety.
Table of Contents
What Is Psychological Safety?
Psychological safety is how we view taking a risk, or how we handle our team taking risks. In a psychologically safe team, members feel comfortable making suggestions or voicing ideas and opinions without fear of being shot down or laughed at.
It is the knowledge that mistakes will be made and not all ideas work, but you will not be punished or ridiculed for making a suggestion or taking a chance. It also allows the member to feel comfortable asking for help when needed.
Psychological Safety Quiz – What You Need to Know
There are several companies that have made studies of psychological safety. Google looked into what made a team successful, naming their study “Project Aristotle” with some fascinating findings on building a thriving team.
There are a few possible questions to ask when conducting this assessment, but the top five of these are:
- If you make a mistake within the team, will it be held against you?
- Are team members able to raise issues and problems?
- Are team members able to ask for help?
- Can you take a risk in your team?
- Are your skills recognized, utilized, and valued?
How to Cultivate Psychological Safety
How can you as a team member or employer work towards cultivating a psychologically safe team? A comprehensive survey such as one found at https://www.leaderfactor.com/psychological-safety-team-survey/ is a great jump-off point for employers who care.
Even if your team scores low on the scale, you can easily make some simple changes:
- Open discussions. Invite members to share questions and viewpoints
- Bad brainstorming. Joking around with some very bad suggestions can help members with the confidence to voice their real ideas.
- Ask questions. Always encourage the asking of questions for clarity. Try and encourage members to explain office jargon, or avoid using it so everyone is on the same page
- Never say no. Offer suggestions such as “building on what you suggest…” or “Let’s give it a try”. This will encourage ideas and risk-taking.
- Team rules. You can agree on how team members treat each other and how responses are voiced.
Safety First
Psychological safety is a big part of moving any business forward. Now that you have a starting point, guide your team towards better psychological safety one step at a time. Start with a psychological safety quiz and see where you need to make some adjustments.
With just a few simple changes, you should be able to improve productivity, as well as decrease employee turnover.
Keep reading our blog for more practical insights into a healthy workplace.