From the course: Managing Team Conflict
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Creating psychological safety on your team
From the course: Managing Team Conflict
Creating psychological safety on your team
- Some leaders dream of living in a conflict-free utopia, but even teams that seem like they get along have disagreements. They just go unspoken. This is not good. Remember, there's a descriptive phrase for this coined by Patrick Lencioni, author of "The Five Dysfunctions of a Team." That state is artificial harmony. This is when a team looks like they all agree, nodding along to one another's ideas, but there's simmering tension or resentment underneath the surface. Often, these unvoiced opinions and emotions come up sideways. People use gossip or back channels to express their disagreements. This isn't healthy and should be avoided, so how do you stay out of artificial harmony? Build psychological safety on your team. This is a term first researched and articulated by Harvard Business School Professor Amy Edmondson. She defines it as "the shared belief that it's okay to take risks, express ideas and concerns,…