June 2026
Psychological Safety
“A team is not a group of people who work together. A team is a group of people who trust each other.”
– Simon Sinek
INTRO
Psychological safety is the belief that you can speak up, ask questions, share ideas, or admit mistakes without fear of embarrassment, punishment, or rejection. When psychological safety is present, teams communicate more openly, learn faster, and are more willing to take the risks that lead to innovation and growth. Simply put, people do their best work when they feel safe enough to be honest and fully contribute. This month we encourage you to have a conversation with your team about psychological safety. The following will help your team understand what it feels like to be in a psychologically safe environment and what can get in the way.
INSTRUCTIONS:
This month we have supplied you with 4 Scenarios. Each scenario contains a Facilitator Prompt and Role Cards (Person 1, Person 2, etc). Ask for volunteers for each scenario (based on how many role cards are available for each), and try to make sure every team member participates at least once!
For each Scenario:
Explain the situation using the Facilitator Prompt, then give each person a Role Card. Allow a moment for that group to study their card, then have them then act out the situation/scenario. Once the point has been illustrated (2-5 minutes) ask the people who did not participate, what they saw and how it applies to your day-to-day activities. Then you can have the participants chime in with what their Prompt Card said and any observations they had from the experience.
*The “Creating Space” scenario contains additional Project Cards for that group to prioritize during their discussion.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCE:
You may use this slide deck for a high-level introduction to concepts surrounding psychological safety however you see fit. Use it internally to bring yourself up to speed on the overarching theme, or share it with your group if you feel confident articulating the content of the slides.