Google researchers, in the Aristotle project - due to the philosopher's phrase “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts”, concluded that for us to assemble a productive team it is more important how people work together than their individual skills. And that the main factor for productive teams is psychological security.

Psychological security is when the team feels secure in expressing itself, sharing, taking risks, without the fear of being judged, punished or embarrassed. Amy Edmondson, a Harvard professor who specializes in the subject, cites examples of the disastrous consequences of teams that do not feel psychological security and therefore remain silent, even if they are right. This is the case of a nurse who had the perception that the dosage of the patient's medication was high. However, she was on call and would have to call the doctor. She recalled other times when she called to ask questions and he reacted reactively and criticized and judged her. So, she didn't call even though she was right. Another case is that of a co-pilot who realizes that the pilot is wrong, but also does not feel comfortable talking. Imagine the consequences of these two situations of silence for fear?

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"Psychological security is the belief that no one will be punished or humiliated for sharing their ideas, questions, concerns or mistakes."

Dr. Amy Edmondson, Harvard professor.

But why, sometimes, do we as leaders fail to see that our team does not feel safe to express themselves? Why is it so difficult to assume our vulnerabilities when we are in the lead and we often prefer to turn a blind eye to the feelings of our team?