A difficult but undeniable truth is that many teams are not experienced as safe places by their members. This is true in healthcare, just as in other sectors.
Doctors engaging in our programs often disclose this, recognising that they and other team members are not engaging in the types of interactions and communication that reflect psychological safety (asking questions, asking for help, disagreeing and debating, everyone contributing, for example).
Many members share this with us in our coaching work and, as we listen and reflect on their experiences, we are increasingly aware of how hard it is to talk about this issue. The irony.
Feeling unsafe in your place of work, after training for many years to develop the expertise required, is confronting. And yet, this is real for many people, in many teams.
Thankfully, most of us are part of multiple teams, and teams whose membership changes regularly. This can provide an opportunity to contrast different environments and, hopefully, to be part of some that feel better and safer.
These experiences can offer some comfort, and importantly, provide examples of what better looks like and what we can aspire to in other settings.
The purpose of this article is to talk openly about the harder side of psychological safety, what it is like when it is not there.
So here goes. What does it feel like, and what can we do when we do not experience psychological safety at work?
While we work with many people committed to building psychological safety in their teams, we also need to build the capacity to navigate those that don’t. Most of the time, we still need to go to work and do the work, even when it does not feel as safe as we would like.
This is the harder side of the conversation, but avoiding it risks slipping into toxic positivity by focusing only on what is working, without acknowledging what is not and the impact of that.
So here is the title again: What if I don’t feel safe in my team?
Here are some key points and tips we have come to across in the many conversations we have had on this topic.
1. You are not alone
As interest, knowledge and discussion of psychological safety increase, more people are able to observe and assess the nature of interactions in their teams, and their own participation in them. While this is positive, it is also bringing greater awareness that many teams don’t feel safe.
That is, they are not safe places for all members to say or ask what they need in order to engage fully in uncertain and complex work. People hold back. They don’t ask questions, raise concerns or offer differing points of view, particularly to those in positions of authority.
2. It can be a confronting realisation – sadness, anger, shock
We are increasingly noticing the difficult emotions that arise as people come to recognise when teams are not safe. There is often a sense of shock or feeling confronted:
How is it that this team, full of expert and dedicated professionals, can feel so unsafe?
How is it that people don’t feel safe to raise issues?
How is it that we expect junior doctors to push back on unreasonable demands, yet know they can’t because the prevailing culture makes it too risky for their career?
Alongside this, people describe sadness, anger and, at times, despondency. Leadership and coaching programs can provide a supportive space to debrief and work through these experiences.
3. It’s not all on you (and it can’t be fixed by one person alone)
Many, if not most, doctors we speak to want to change the situation, to take hold of the team climate and make it better. We value this. There is clear evidence on the importance of psychological safety, and there are practical ways individuals can contribute to building it.
But it is a team dynamic. It cannot be created or sustained by one person alone. So it is important to consider what this means in practice, and the implications of that.
4. Talk to trusted others (find a partner or ‘tribe’ for this work)
Is there someone you know, personally or professionally, you can talk to about your situation? Someone you can share the concept of psychological safety with, and discuss your observations that it may not be present, or not strong, in your team?
It helps to choose someone you trust, who has an interest in this area. This creates space to speak openly about what is happening, the opposite of the experience within an unsafe team.
Talking it through with another person can help you clarify your thinking, sense check your observations and find a more productive way to express both your experience and your hope for change.
5. Start small - take micro actions for safety and sustainability
When you feel ready to try doing things differently and begin to build psychological safety in your team, go slowly and start small. It is important to recognise that while psychological safety can be created and strengthened, when the starting point is unsafe this needs to be approached carefully.
Going in with a big plan or pushing for rapid change is rarely effective in a team that is not ready, particularly where people do not yet feel safe to ask questions, check understanding or express disagreement. If you are not in a formal leadership role, this can carry additional risk, including defensiveness or backlash from others.
A more considered, incremental approach is often more effective. The next section explores how to begin making these small shifts.
6. Be prepared to go slow - timelines for change can be long
Creating change is hard. Whether in yourself, your attitudes, thoughts and behaviours, in others, or across a team. Sustainable behavioural change, particularly in how people communicate and interact, tends to happen in small, incremental ways.
This means introducing one or two new behaviours at a time and then repeating them consistently as the team works together.
If this is something you want to try, start by choosing one or two behaviours you would like to adopt. This might be contributing in a meeting, asking for clarification when needed, or simply greeting colleagues by name. Then identify moments that feel suitable and ‘safe enough’ to practise them. For example, you might aim to speak up once in a meeting each week.
7. Navigating a leader or boss who may not be on the same page
Things get more difficult if people in the team who hold leadership, high status, or other powerful positions, are not on the same page.
For example, a senior colleague or authority figure may not be aware of the lack of safety, or may be contributing to it through their behaviours or communication, or simply have a very different style from what is experienced as conducive to psychological safety. If this is the case, proceed carefully.
You may want to reflect on what might be going on – is this person unaware? Too busy or not enough capacity to notice? Or perhaps they are ‘difficult’ and engaging in more hostile interacting?
This is a tricky situation, and one we hear a lot about. While it is tempting to act, to call out issues and speak up in line with what we know supports effective teams, we need to take care in unsafe environments. There is a real risk that others may react defensively, angrily or publicly to these actions. This can come at a high and often unfair cost for those trying to create something better.
So, while you may be ready, it does not mean others are.
Raising an issue when others are not ready, not interested, or resistant for whatever reason is likely to create a reaction or backlash. Planning how to start and starting small by modelling effective behaviours yourself is a good place to start.
Goodluck and take care out there.
Dr Anna Clark (PhD) delivers AMA Victoria’s Leadership education and Leadership coaching programs.
Click here for more leadership insights. You can also watch our recent webinar on ‘Psychological Safety’.
If you would like to learn more about how to create psychological safety at work, come join our program.
You can also view our other professional development offerings in this area.
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