In a recent exchange with Eadine Hickey, she described psychological safety as something that can be reduced whenever someone feels shut down or made to look “stupid.” It got me thinking, if psychological safety can be so easily disturbed, is it really "safety" at all?
Maybe Psychological Safety Isn’t a Feeling, But a Process to Be Measured
It seems to me that I see psychological safety a lot differently than most.. Team members often don’t stay silent because they have nothing to say, but because they’re concerned they won’t receive the respect they deserve for contributing. Not because they are weak, but because they don’t know how to address objectionable behavior without exasperating the situation.
Why Your Organization Needs Micro-Conflict Intelligence—Yesterday
We believe that most team blowups don't start as major conflicts. They slowly unravel through micro-conflicts, born by dogmatic, "I am right, you are wrong thinking." Subtle tensions, repeated interruptions, and passive-aggressive comments. These aren’t “small” problems; they are early signals of cultural erosion.
Why the Future of Dynamic Collaboration Could Lie in Micro-Conflict Intelligence (MI)
In Design Studies (2017), Joel Chan and his colleagues observed that teams that failed to resolve their micro-conflicts often failed to achieve their project goals. Conversely, those that successfully navigated these everyday tensions didn’t just avoid breakdown, they reduced uncertainty, built trust, and ultimately delivered stronger outcomes.
5 billion Ways to Handle a Spat. Time for One that Actually Works.
How many workplace team members does it take to screw up addressing misbehavior in a meeting? Five billion....ha! That's because every human on the planet seems to have their own specific way of handling a spat. Some avoid it. Some explode. Some smile and stew. Others call HR. Few actually address it fairly, in the moment
Why My SpatzAI Pitch Was Rejected by Atlassian Ventures
Two years ago, when I pitched SpatzAI fair play for teams to an investor from Atlassian Investment, he listened carefully, smiled, and said something that stuck: “Managers might start getting honest pushback from their teams.”
Formally Addressing Micro-Conflicts Vs Toxic Conflict Resolution
Why is it that formal conflict resolution is always at the end of the process and not the start? When most workplace conflicts, needing resolution, usually (if not in every case) start with a minor infraction, why not enable team members to more formally address these micro-conflicts or minor spats, well before intense and expensive conflict resolution is ever needed?
The Scam of the Respect Industry & Why Disrespect Still Rules
Now ask any expert on psychological safety and they’ll repeat the same rhetoric, that people need to feel safe (respected) when they speak up. In fact, ask anyone on the street and they’ll probably say the same thing. We all want to be treated with respect, especially when we share ideas or concerns.
Why is conflict resolution at the end of the process and not at the start?
When most workplace conflicts, needing resolution, usually (if not in every case) start with a minor infraction, why not enable team members to effectively address these micro-conflicts well before expensive conflict resolution is ever needed.
Attitude Indicator
Imagine if we had an attitude indicator (Wikipedia) for when we are having discussions during difficult workplace decision-making? It would help us see early on when we were starting to lean too far in one direction, when our tone, emotions, or assumptions were pulling the conversation off balance.
Object123 