Goldilocks and the Three Steps to Psychological Safety and Fairness

Psychological safety, in my opinion, is all about striking the right balance—like the Goldilocks principle, where feedback is not too harsh, not too soft, but just right. Offering feedback in a way that is fair is crucial to maintaining this balance. For example, saying, “I think this is not a good idea because of…” is, in my view, a fair approach. It allows for honest, constructive dialogue without shutting down the conversation or dismissing the other person’s ideas. On the other hand, offering feedback impatiently like, “Dude! That will never work!!” comes across as unfair and can undermine the very foundation of teamwork collaboration and psychological safety. Being fair in how we deliver our feedback, is at the heart of creating a psychologically safe and disciplined environment, we believe.

At SpatzAI we are working on a three-step procedure—Caution, Objection, and Stop, designed to help teams address situations when a team member deems that the feedback is being delivered unfairly—the behavior behind the feedback. This empowers team members to recognize and course-correct the behavior that can harm teamwork. The Spatz Chat App and Team-assist review platform offers three crucial steps to achieve this balance. By following these steps or phases, and using the team-assisted review when required, teams can maintain a psychologically safe and disciplined environment, where feedback is balanced, and every fair voice is recognized.