Google’s massive two-year study on team performance reveals that the highest-performing teams have one thing in common: psychological safety, the belief that you won’t be punished when you make a mistake.
“There’s no team without trust” – Paul Santagata, Head of Industry at Google
Studies show that psychological safety allows for moderate risk-taking, speaking your mind, creativity, and sticking your neck out without fear of having it cut off — just the types of behavior that lead to market breakthroughs.
So how can you increase psychological safety on your own team?
- Approach conflict as a collaborator, not an adversary
- Speak human to human
- Anticipate reactions and plan countermoves
- Replace blame with curiosity
- Ask for feedback on delivery
- Measure psychological safety
