How to Encourage Psychological Safety in Meetings: Tips for Leaders

When people join meetings at your business, you want them to feel welcomed and comfortable collaborating with others. In other words, you want them to feel psychologically safe.

A concept introduced by Harvard Business School professor Amy Edmondson, psychological safety refers to an environment in which team members feel safe embracing interpersonal risk-taking, sharing innovative ideas, and expressing their thoughts without fear of negative consequences. This kind of environment is crucial for open dialogue, creativity, and team cohesion. 

At Interaction Associates, we’re committed to helping your company work better together. That starts with improving your (1) collaboration strategies and (2) employee mental and physical wellness. 

Here’s how leaders can build psychological safety in meetings, contributing to more productive discussions and stronger teams.

1. Set Clear Expectations

Before every meeting, establish clear expectations. This includes defining the meeting’s purpose, agenda, and desired outcomes. 

When team members understand the objectives, they can prepare appropriately, both mentally and emotionally. Additionally, when expectations are clear, employees can use their preparation time more strategically. 

Considering that employees spend an average of four hours per week preparing for and attending team meetings, it’s smart to help them prepare more efficiently. 

Practical Steps for Setting Expectations: 

• Provide a detailed agenda outlining the topics to be discussed, along with any relevant background information. This preparation allows participants to come ready to engage.

• Build agreements with participants on how you’ll engage with one another. This could include norms around speaking time, respecting differing opinions, and what this meeting IS and ISN’T. For example, this might be a meeting for brainstorming ideas only, it’s not a meeting where final decisions will be made.

If you feel overwhelmed by this prospect or simply lack the time to set parameters for your meetings, consider working with professional meeting facilitators. They’ll handle the nitty-gritty details so you can focus more on things like fostering psychological safety amongst employees. 

2. Model Vulnerability

Leaders play a crucial role in setting the tone for psychological safety in meetings. By sharing their own experiences—especially challenges, mistakes, and lessons learned—they demonstrate that vulnerability is not only acceptable but encouraged. 

This openness invites participants to express their own vulnerabilities, leading to deeper connections and trust. 

According to DDI’s Global Leadership Forecast in 2023, leaders who regularly display vulnerability are 5.3x more likely to be trusted by their employees. Furthermore, when leaders genuinely acknowledge their failures or shortcomings, they are 7.5x more likely to maintain trust over those who do not.

Example: Start the team meeting by sharing a recent challenge you faced and how you overcame it as it pertains to the meeting topic. This approach humanizes you as a leader and creates an opening for team members to share their own mistakes and experiences.

Catering to Shy or Quiet Employees

You want everyoneto experience psychological safety in meetings, including vulnerable co-workers who are more reserved and less willing to jump into conversations. 

It’s estimated that over half of the U.S. population identifies as introverts. Therefore, it stands to reason that at least some of the people in your meeting might find it difficult or unappealing to speak up (although not all introverts feel this way).

One effective strategy to help such employees is to create a supportive atmosphere by explicitly inviting quieter members to share their thoughts, either by directly asking for their input or encouraging them to contribute when appropriate. 

Leaders can also utilize pre-meeting check-ins to gather insights from these employees in a more comfortable, one-on-one setting, allowing them to express their ideas before the larger group discussion. 

Additionally, structured formats, such as small breakout groups or anonymous polls, can provide a less intimidating platform for quieter individuals to share their perspectives without the pressure of speaking in front of the entire team.

Remember: a psychologically safe workplace caters to all types of personalities and preferences. Don’t forget about your more reserved co-workers. 

3. Encourage Open Dialogue

Leaders need to create atmospheres where employees feel completely comfortable expressing their thoughts. This means actively encouraging open dialogue and making it clear that every opinion matters. 

To do this, use open-ended questions to stimulate discussion and gather diverse perspectives. As Nielsen Norman Group shares, open-ended questions tend to result in deeper insights while closed questions tend to not explain insights. 

Effective Open-Ended Questions:

• “What challenges are you currently facing in your projects?”

• “How do you think we can improve our processes?”

• “What ideas do you have for tackling this issue?”

Tip: After asking a question, give team members time to think before expecting responses. This allows for more thoughtful, valuable contributions and ensures everyone has the chance to share.

4. Practice Active Listening

Active listening is a core building block for trust and protecting your team’s psychological safety. When leaders demonstrate genuine interest in their team members' contributions, it reinforces the idea that all voices are valued.

But what exactly is active listening? Well, it extends beyond just lending an ear when it’s needed. 

Harvard Business Review describes active listening as “when you not only hear what someone is saying but also attune to their thoughts and feelings. It turns a conversation into an active, non-competitive, two-way interaction.”

Techniques for Actively Listening:

• Maintain eye contact to show you are engaged and interested in what the speaker is saying.
• Use nonverbal cues such as nodding and leaning slightly forward to signal to the speaker that you are attentive.
• Paraphrase what the speaker has said to confirm understanding and show that you are paying attention.

Another hot (and maybe controversial) tip: leave your digital devices in another room! It’s hard for anyone to actively listen if they’re distracted by the pings and vibrations of their cell phone, tablet, or laptop. 

What If the Meeting Is Virtual or Hybrid? 

Psychological safety in meetings looks a little different when everyone joins on a video platform. However, active listening still matters in hybrid or virtual meetings. 

To enhance active listening in these settings, encourage meeting participants to minimize distractions, such as silencing notifications and closing unrelated tabs. Additionally, using verbal affirmations such as “I see” or nodding during others’ contributions can demonstrate attentiveness. 

You can also encourage attendees to use chat functions for questions or comments, allowing quieter participants to contribute without interrupting the flow of conversation.

5. Openly Recognize Contributions

Acknowledging team members’ efforts, ideas, and contributions promotes a sense of belonging and encourages future participation. Recognition can be a powerful motivator, and it reinforces the behavior you want to see in the group.

In a 2024 Gallup workplace survey, employees were asked to recall who gave them their most meaningful and memorable recognition. The data revealed the most memorable recognition comes most often from an employee's manager (28%), followed by a high-level leader or CEO (24%), the manager's manager (12%), a customer (10%), and peers (9%). 

Meetings offer an excellent opportunity for public recognition from these sources. At the beginning of meetings, take a moment to celebrate recent successes or contributions from team members.

It’s also a good idea to facilitate peer recognition in meetings. Create a system where team members can publicly (and positively) recognize each other’s efforts. This could be as simple as a “kudos” section in your meetings.

6. Create an Inclusive Environment

Diversity of thought and experience enriches discussions and drives innovation during meeting sessions. Leaders should actively promote inclusivity by inviting contributions from all team members, particularly those who may be quieter or less confident in voicing their opinions.

Here are some ways you can support psychologically safe meetings: 

Use Techniques like Round-Robin Sharing

Round-robin sharing is a powerful brainstorming technique that promotes inclusivity by ensuring that every team member has an opportunity to contribute their thoughts and ideas during meetings. 

The meeting moves around the room (or virtual space) and allows each person to speak in turn, creating a structured environment where quieter individuals feel empowered to share their perspectives without the pressure of interrupting or competing for attention. 

This approach not only encourages participation from all team members but also fosters a sense of belonging and mutual respect, as everyone’s input is valued equally. Additionally, round-robin sharing can lead to a more diverse range of ideas, promoting better creativity and problem-solving within the team.

Check for Understanding

Are people actually paying attention, comprehending, and retaining information at meetings? Leaders should regularly pause to ask participants if they have any questions or need clarification on the topics being discussed. 

This practice invites employee engagement and encourages team members to voice any uncertainties or concerns they may have, creating a safe space for open communication. Actively seeking feedback and confirming that everyone is on the same page can minimize misunderstandings and ensure that all voices are heard. 

7. Follow Up

We cannot overstate the importance of following up after meetings. Gathering feedback on the meeting process shows team members that you value their opinions and are committed to improving future meetings.

Use tools like Google Forms or SurveyMonkey to collect honest feedback without putting anyone on the spot. This will make people feel safer about critiquing procedures without reprimand. 

We also recommend scheduling brief conversations with team members to discuss their thoughts on the meetings, how they promote psychological safety, and any suggestions they may have. You might be surprised to hear their thoughts.

Make Your Employees Feel Safe & Valued in Meetings

Founding a psychologically safe work environment requires a deliberate effort from leaders. By implementing these strategies, you can cultivate a meeting space where team members feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and new ideas. 

Looking for more information about this? We encourage you to attend our free, on-demand Facilitation Masterclass on how to foster psychological safety, featuring Senior Consultants Andrew Black, Ph.D. and Eve Keller.

You’re also welcome to explore our Mastering Meetings™ program, designed to help leaders gain essential skills for running more productive, enjoyable meetings.