May the Force Be With Your Mind: Psychological Safety at Work for #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth

[Theresa McFarlane]

Good Day Everyone from WA. Pardon my delay in posting as I am on PST.

I want to take advantage of Miscellaneous Monday to highlight that May is Mental Health Awareness Month. 

What better way to focus on well-being than by creating a psychologically safe space at work? To keep on the quarterly theme, I am combining Star Wars and servant leadership to explore how to foster a work environment where everyone feels comfortable taking risks, sharing ideas, and learning from mistakes.

Top 10 Ways to Build Psychological Safety at Work:

1. Lead with Empathy: Channel your inner Obi-Wan Kenobi and be a wise and understanding mentor. 
2. Celebrate Mistakes: Yoda might say, "Do. Or do not. There is no try." But we all know there's a learning curve! Celebrate effort and growth.
3. Open Communication is Key: Just like Princess Leia relying on the Rebel Alliance, open communication is vital. Encourage questions and feedback.
4. Focus on Strengths: Luke Skywalker wouldn't have destroyed the Death Star without the Force (and his X-wing piloting skills) and some bad PM/QA team from the Empire on not seeing the risks on that vulnerability! Recognize and leverage team member strengths and turn them into opportunities.
5. Respect for Diversity: The Rebellion wouldn't have been successful without Wookiees, droids, and humans working together. Embrace diverse perspectives. We all don't want to be clones..just saying
6. Show Appreciation: A simple "thank you" goes a long way. Just like Han Solo rewarding Chewbacca, recognize team contributions. Yes... he did get that Yavin medal. 
7. Model Vulnerability: Even Jedi Masters make mistakes! Share your own challenges to normalize vulnerability.
8. Focus on Learning: There's always a bigger fish to fry (or a new skill to learn). Encourage continuous learning and development.
9. Hold Safe Spaces: Create opportunities for open and honest discussions without judgment. Think war room strategy sessions, minus the Death Star plans.
10. Celebrate Successes: Big or small, victories deserve recognition. Party like the Ewoks after defeating the Empire!

Bonus: Leadership Lessons from Star Wars:

1. Mutual Trust: Luke trusted Leia and Han implicitly, just like leaders should trust their teams.
2. Shared Goals: The Rebellion had a clear mission: defeat the Empire. Ensure everyone understands the team's objectives.
3. Empowerment: Leia wasn't just a princess, she was a leader who empowered others (like Luke to use the Force). Let us all not forget how she was an epic boss flying through space. She was strong with the force superpowers.
4. Transparency: Leaders like Mon Mothma kept the Rebellion informed, even during tough times.
5. Shared Risks and Rewards: Everyone in the Rebellion faced danger together, just like high-functioning teams share risks and successes.

---

I don't want to forget the laid off, job seekers:

It's definitely scary and frustrating to be looking for a job right now in this tough market. Trying to land a new role is work in and of itself.

I myself have been laid off for over just shy of 6 months.

Don't give up, you are not alone.

Far too many people are going through the same thing rigth now. 

If you are employed, I would encourage you to model good servant leadership right now and check in with your network. If you are in a position to help someone get hired or network them, please do so.

Here are 5 tips to help you manage stay focused and as positive as possible on your job search:

1. Acknowledge Your Feelings: It's okay to feel frustrated! Being laid off can be stressful and the job search can be discouraging. Take some time to vent to a trusted friend or family member, or consider journaling your frustrations.
2. Reframe Your Mindset: Instead of dwelling on the negative aspects of the market, focus on the opportunity to find a role that's a great fit for you. This could be a chance to explore a new industry or position you've always been interested in.
3. Focus on What You Can Control: You can't control the job market, but you can control your job search strategy. Refine your resume and cover letter, practice your interviewing skills, and expand your network.
4. Maintain a Routine: The structure of a daily routine can help combat feelings of aimlessness. Schedule specific times for job searching, networking, and self-care activities to stay productive and motivated.
5. Celebrate Small Wins: The job search is a marathon, not a sprint. Acknowledge your accomplishments, no matter how small. Landing an interview, connecting with a new contact, or even just completing a strong application are all steps in the right direction.

Remember, there are many resources available to help you during your job search. Consider reaching out to your former employer for outplacement services, your network, or utilize online resources like government job boards or professional networking sites. Stay positive, stay focused, and keep moving forward!

---

May this #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth be filled with open communication, mutual respect, and a healthy dose of Star Wars inspiration! Let's create work environments where everyone feels comfortable using the Force... or at least their best ideas. 

What do you do to create psychological safety at work or for yourself during your job search?

[Sam Nadarajan]

This was an awesome read @Theresa McFarlane, especially "We all don't want to be clones..just saying" <-- that's money right there!

It's definitely hard for me to answer this question b/c I'm always afraid of self-congratulating or internal-validation of my efforts, that being said in discussions I try to:

• Follow up on everyone's serious thoughts - in a discussion if someone makes a comment and I can recognize it's contributing to the discussion, I'll follow up asking for the person to expand
• Model good behavior - safe environments are created and maintained long before situations that would benefit from a safe environment. There are some things I do in meetings to ensure everyone has a chance to contribute (if they want to) but even before the meeting just trying to active listen and validate people's thoughts goes a long way into encouraging people to contribute in/during a meeting.
• Get to know people - when I first started in my career I was so focused on work and I would only entertain conversations directly related to work. Working with other people involves emotion, even to some of the more stoic people such as myself. Since then, I've learned that taking an appropriate interest in other peoples' lives (as they're willing to share) helps others feel comfortable and a bit more open. Work is never going to be the same place like home, but it can still be a fun place that excites people.

I'm interested to see what others have to say! I know I have a lot of areas left to learn and grow into, but for me, being open and honest about it is the best thing I can do for myself! And it helps to be a part of a community that has similar ideals :)

Great conversation starter and thought-provoking topic!

[Theresa McFarlane]

Sam: Thank you for your kind words. I get it, I used to live in England where we apologize for everything! It is a habit I had to work on to overcome. I still slip at times. It is always OK to share when we have recognized when we make a difference at work or have a positive impact so we should not have to be so humble about it. :)

At one of my clients, I brought in working agreements, cadence, and Atlassian tooling so we could have async collaboration. We were transparent about our accomplishments each sprint and would pubish in an email, corkboard/whiteboard, and on our intranet the accomplishments of our scrum teams on a monthly/quarterly basis. We had on the spot rewards as well as other forms of recognition. 

We used retro.io in alignment with Confluence to sample team psychological safety and track it over time as well as other metrics and coach notes so that we could recogize when we would need to change it up or take action.

Those clones though....they either worked or they were a hot mess. Snoke was a strandcast seen as an unworthy host and rejected by Palpatine.  Meanwhile Boba Fett takes a dip in the bacta tank and is magically healed up like nothing happened. 

The Bad Batch Rocked!

We don't want our direct reports to be just like us, even cosmetically.... That will = zero innovation. We want to value the diversity that everyone brings to the team. Everyone has something to add in their field of expertise or experience. There is always something to be learned from others.