When It Feels Safe to Do the Right Thing

Intro

Not long ago, I had dinner with a former employee I once supervised. We hadn’t seen each other in years, and it was a joy to catch up. Over our meal, she told me about a recent interview she’d done with a student completing a leadership program. One of the questions the student asked was, “What’s the most meaningful work experience you remember?”

She paused during the interview, thought about it, and then told the student that it was her time working with me—because, in her words:

“It always felt safe to do the right thing.”

The Stories Behind the Statement

We both laughed as we reminisced. During our tenure together, we’d had more than a few occasions where we had to “self-report” rule violations or mistakes that happened under our watch.

Looking back now, we can laugh about it. But at the time? Those moments were stressful—sometimes agonizing. The kind of situations where your heart sinks, your stomach knots, and your mind starts racing about possible repercussions.

What made those moments bearable—and even transformative—was that we had one another. Neither of us concealed the truth or passed judgment. Instead, we approached these situations with a shared commitment: to support each other, to be honest, and to learn from whatever had gone wrong.

The Role of Psychological Safety

Because we felt safe together, we could explore the why behind the mistake—examining extenuating circumstances, identifying what could have been done differently, and deciding how to prevent it in the future.

Here’s the truth: sometimes the work itself is hard enough. The consequence of a mistake is already built into the stress, embarrassment, or frustration of the experience. Adding punishment on top only pushes people toward concealment and fear.

People don’t need to feel pressure to hide what happened or brace themselves for retribution.

They need to feel that:

• Someone understands them
• Someone will listen without judgment
• Someone will help them find solutions to prevent a repeat

Punishment breeds cover-ups.
Psychological safety breeds learning.

Fear - the Enemy of Learning

I recently had a similar conversation with an employee in quality assurance and analysis. They shared how frustrating it was that senior executives often wanted data reported in the most favorable light—not the most truthful one.

As someone who loves data for its ability to drive improvement, they found this deeply discouraging. They spent hours analyzing trends, identifying risks, and finding opportunities for growth—only to have that insight minimized or hidden to protect reputations. In the end, the organization missed the chance to learn and improve.

The parallels between the two conversations were striking. Whether it’s reporting an operational mistake or presenting uncomfortable data, the core issue is the same: when people don’t feel safe to tell the truth, the organization loses. Without honesty, there is no learning. Without learning, there is no improvement.

A Leadership Takeaway

As leaders, we have a choice in those moments when mistakes happen or hard truths surface. We can choose fear or psychological safety. One creates silence and cover-ups. The other creates growth, trust, and stronger teams.

These conversations reminded me: the real mark of a meaningful workplace isn’t one without mistakes—it’s one where people grow and learn together.