Have you ever found yourself in a meeting room where you really want to speak up and say what’s on your mind, but instead of blurting it out you decide it’s safer and wiser to keep it locked up inside? Or maybe you’ve noticed a colleague holding back a valuable idea. This is the face of fear in the corporate environment and it has more power than we’d like to admit. In this post I’d like to look at creating fearless team dynamics.
What separates high performing teams from the rest is the presence of trust. When there is fear instead of trust, team members conceal weaknesses and mistakes. However, before looking at creating a culture of trust and a culture of fearless team dynamics, let’s look at fear.
What do individuals fear in corporate organisations?
There are several reasons why individuals might feel afraid in an organisation.
- Fear of loss of reputation, position or job security
- Fear of judgment (from peers and senior management)
- Fear of failure (what happens if…)
- Fear of being ridiculed by peers
With this feeling of fear, individuals hesitate to ask for help. Consequently, they jump to conclusions about others’ intentions, hold grudges, and dread meetings. subsequently, they have difficulty making decisions, miss deadlines, deliver mediocre work, and lack focus and clear objectives.
All in all, fear hinders teamwork and overall team performance. As team leaders, we need to learn to transform fear into trust. To create fearless team dynamics we need to convey the understanding that individuals can speak up and share their ideas without fearing consequences.
How to build trust in cognitively diverse teams
Amy Edmondson’s concept of psychological safety shows how individuals thrive in environments where they can voice their unique perspectives without fear of retribution.
Teaming is the art of communicating and coordinating with people across boundaries of all kinds – expertise, status, and distance, to name the most important. But whether you’re teaming with new colleagues all the time or working in a stable team, effective teamwork happens best in a psychologically safe workplace.”
Amy Edmondosn, “The Fearless Organisation”
Her research illuminates the path from fear to trust through showing respect and openness or as some say, transparency. I’d like to focus on those two factors for this post because neither is simple in teams that have cognitive diversity.
Showing respect around the world
The way you show respect around the globe, can differ greatly. In every situation that we face, we need to remember that we judge implicitly according to our normality. So if your understanding of showing respect is shaking someone’s hand when you greet them and perhaps in a team meeting you tell them bluntly that you disagree with their idea, that is your normality.
We need to keep in mind that our normality is just that. It is normal to us, but that does not mean that our team members also believe that is the correct way of showing respect to someone. Their cultural backgrounds and experiences will determine what they view as showing respect.
If your colleagues do it differently, you might misunderstand them or you perhaps judge them harshly. Once we start judging people, we start jumping to conclusions and there goes psychological safety and trust out the window.
The software engineer and the head of marketing
Imagine that on our very diverse team we have a 23 year old Dutch software engineer and a 48 year old Mexican Head of Marketing. The way we demonstrate respect to them will differ according to their normality. How do they view respect? Only then can we reciprocate correctly.
Perhaps the Dutch software engineer has been brought up in an environment where respect is shown by telling an individual (irrespective of their role) straight up, directly, what they think. Even if it’s something that can sound negative such as a disagreement.
The way we show respect can vary, and we usually show respect according to how we see respect.
Try that same technique with the Mexican Head of Marketing. Imagine if he has been brought up in an environment where social status depends heavily on seniority and age. Imagine you’re in a team meeting, and you’re two levels beneath him in the organisation. If you transfer a negative comment about something he has said or done, bluntly, you could make him lose face, lose respect for you and likely not want to work with you again.
Transparency
What about the element of transparency? As leaders, we are expected to encourage transparent communication if we endevour to have psychological safety on our team. Yet, transparent communication is also an element that is very cultural.
Imagine you have a colleague who likes black and white communication. This colleague is content to say, “No, I don’t think that your idea will work” to your face. In a team situation where black and white communication is appreciated, that type of transparency would work. But what if you have a colleague who was brought up in a society where the mere sound of the word, “No”, or any form of disagreement can appear to be a high level of disrespect and a sign of breaking a harmonious relationship? How do you expect that colleague to say exactly what is on their mind in a team meeting?
It is up to you to help them. You need to modify your communication, in a way to have them tell you what is on their mind. It’s up to you to formulate the correct questions. Consider questions that do not seem intimidating or that are very open. This technique allows enough space for the person to tell you what is really challenging them.
We mustn’t jump to the assumption that our colleagues’ passport determines their communication techniques. It is our passport, profession, religion, age and also the society we were brought up, amongst other factors, that influence our communication.
Creating fearless team dynamics
In conclusion, the journey from fear to trust within cognitively diverse teams is vital for fostering an environment where every member can thrive. Fear, stemming from various sources such as the fear of judgment, failure, or loss, can severely hinder teamwork and overall performance. However, by prioritizing the cultivation of trust, leaders can unlock the full potential of their teams.
Central to this transformation is the establishment of psychological safety. This concept emphasizes creating an environment where individuals feel safe to voice their perspectives without fear of repercussion. Yet, achieving this requires a deep understanding of cultural nuances in communication and respect.
Respect, a cornerstone of trust-building, manifests differently across cultures. What may be perceived as respectful communication in one cultural context could be viewed as disrespectful in another. Similarly, transparency, another key element, needs to be tailored to accommodate diverse communication styles. Leaders must navigate these differences sensitively, ensuring that all team members feel empowered to express themselves.
By embracing cultural differences and fostering an environment where every voice is valued, teams can transcend fear and unlock their collective potential to thrive.
