Part 2 - Does Psychological Safety Actually Kill Performance Standards?

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"If we make everyone feel safe to speak up, will that lower our performance standards?"

I swear, this question comes up in every leadership workshop I run. Usually, from someone at the back, arms crossed, looking like they are ready to debate me for the next hour. And honestly? I understand. On the surface, it seems sensible – if people are not worried about consequences, will they just... coast?

The issue at hand is that the entire question is founded on a false premise, which I find somewhat bothersome.

We Are Not Choosing Sides Here

Most leaders believe they must choose between psychological safety and high performance. But that treats these ideas as opposites when they are dance partners.

I recently came across a study involving 580 employees from various high-tech firms. The findings were intriguing – psychological safety did not merely exist alongside innovative performance; it promoted it through improved communication. The researchers highlighted three main areas where this was evident: team collaboration, information sharing, and what they termed "give-and-take balance" (which is simply a way of saying that people genuinely listen to each other).

The Thing About Uncertainty

Here is what truly excites me about this topic: in uncertain environments – and let us be honest, that is pretty much everywhere these days – you NEED both high standards AND psychological safety to perform well. Not one or the other. Both.

Why? Because during rapid change, learning becomes your competitive edge. And learning demands people to admit they don't know something, to ask potentially foolish questions, to share half-formed ideas that might hold the seed of brilliance.

Without psychological safety, teams become stuck in a strange performance charade. Everyone is nodding along, assuming others are on the same page, when in reality, nobody wants to be the one to say, "Wait, I am completely lost." Information is hoarded. People bite their tongues when they should be speaking up.

I have witnessed this unfold so frequently that it is almost foreseeable.

The Innovation Piece

What convinced me was seeing how the three dimensions from that study – collaboration, information sharing, and balanced dialogue – directly enhanced innovative performance. Safety does not hinder innovation; it is what makes innovation possible in the first place.

Reflect on the last time your team missed a significant detail or a project went awry. How much of that was due to:

• Someone knowing something but not saying it?

• Questions that felt too obvious or risky to ask?

• Conversations happening in the hallway instead of the boardroom?

• Ideas that never made it past someone's internal editor?

I am willing to bet it was more than you would like to admit.

But What About Standards?

Now, before anyone criticises me, I am not suggesting we turn the workplace into a feelings festival. Leaders still need to make tough decisions. Poor behaviour still requires consequences if someone is being a bully, disrespectful, or acting unethically, which needs addressing.

The difference is this: psychological safety is not about lowering your standards. It is about creating conditions where people feel safe enough to genuinely help you meet those standards instead of merely pretending to.

Try This Tomorrow

Want to assess where your team stands? Review your last few meetings and estimate how much time was dedicated to advocacy (people promoting their ideas) versus inquiry (people asking sincere questions to understand). If it's all advocacy, you might be watching a performance rather than engaging in genuine problem-solving.

Here is something I have started doing: when I finish a project, I ask "What did I learn?" before I ask "What did I accomplish?" It is important to face the messy truths so that I can improve the next time.

What has your experience been? Have you found ways to maintain high standards while creating space for people to be genuinely honest? I would love to hear how you are navigating this – because honestly, it is one of the trickiest balancing acts in leadership.

Reference: Jin, H., & Peng, Y. (2024). The impact of team psychological safety on employee innovative performance: A study with communication behavior as a mediator variable. PLOS ONE, 19(10), e0306629.