Psychological Safety

As if…

 

Psychological safety is the belief that one will not be punished or humiliated for speaking up with ideas, questions, concerns, or mistakes. It is a dynamic, emergent property of interaction and can be destroyed in an instant with an ill-timed sigh.”

“Without behaviors that create and maintain a level of psychological safety in a group, people do not fully contribute — and when they don’t, the power of cognitive diversity is left unrealized. Furthermore, anxiety rises and defensive behavior prevails.”

Most radio station personnel are so busy that the goal of most meetings is just to have them end as quickly as possible.

But I’ve been in so many stations where concerns go unspoken, where dissenting voices are at risk of losing their jobs.

How can we make our stations better if we’re not allowed to talk about how they’re not doing their best?

The very worst attitude inside any radio station is complacency, and I hear it – HEAR it – in every city I visit.

Bad boardwork.
Terrible liners.
Weak talent, so weak the word “talent” shouldn’t be used.
Poor artist and/or style and/or era separation.

Clear signs that boxes are being checked off, desks are being cleared, meetings are starting and stopping on time, and no one is paying attention to how average, how mediocre, the product is every time I listen.

As one good friend has remarked about his stations and those running them: “What can I say? He keeps the trains running on time.”

As if an absence of complaints is the goal.

Look, if the point isn’t greatness, then what is the point?

I want to be around people who aren’t satisfied with average.

I want to be around people who will be remembered as legends in a couple of decades.

Any of you still out there?

If your station still has the autonomy to actually address problems and try to find creative solutions to those problems you should read this, from the Harvard Business Review: The Two Traits of the Best Problem-Solving Teams.