07 Dec Do You Have Personal, Portable, Psychological Safety?
We’d all love to enjoy happiness … all the time.
But that’s not going to happen.
The reality is, we can all enjoy happiness some of the time but we’ll also experience some of the so-called negative emotions, such as stress and anxiety and depression, and when we do so, psychological safety is something that can help us get through and thrive better (more often) …
via Psychology Today by Michelle McQuaid
With more than two-thirds of workers reporting that they feel burnt out due to the psychological hazards they’re experiencing at work, governments and organizations are scrambling to minimize these risks. But while much can be done – and should be done – by workplaces and leaders to keep their people safe, researchers have found that there are simple but powerful actions each of us can also take to avoid burning ourselves out.
“What feels psychologically safe for each of us at work can vary greatly between us,” explained Paige Williams, my co-founder at The Leaders Lab. “For example, while no one is likely to feel safe with someone yelling and swearing at us, you may feel comfortable passionately debating most issues as we work together, whereas I may feel very stressed when someone is often argumentative.”
This is because who we are (i.e., our age, gender, ethnicity, etc.), our experiences of the world, and our perceptions of power shape what feels safe for each of us in different contexts. So, how can we navigate the subjective nature of what feels safe for each of us at work?
Researcher Cy Wakeman has found that when we have “personal portable psychological safety” it frees us to be less dependent on the behavior of others and the environment that we’re in. It gives us the confidence to acknowledge that we are each perfectly imperfect human beings who don’t have everything figured out, who aren’t getting it right all of the time, and who need each other’s help and support as we learn and grow, and the confidence to accept that there is no shame in this reality as we move between different people and situations at work.
Closely aligned with Kristen Neff’s research on self-compassion, personal portable psychological safety depends on us having the knowledge, tools, and support to practice …
… keep reading the full & original article HERE