Psychological safety with yourself
Psychological safety is about feeling safe to be yourself—at work, in life, and especially with yourself. On a team, it means you can speak up, ask questions, share ideas, or admit mistakes without fear of being judged, ignored, or punished. You’re not walking on eggshells—you’re showing up fully, and so is everyone else.
Harvard professor Amy Edmondson helped bring this concept into the spotlight. Her research showed that teams with strong psychological safety don’t just feel better—they perform better. People collaborate more, raise concerns earlier, and learn faster together. That kind of trust makes all the difference.
But psychological safety doesn’t start with a team—it starts with how you treat yourself.
In my career, I’ve often faced imposter syndrome rooted in the feeling that I’m not technical enough. That belief runs deep, tied to the fact that I struggled in school, and that my learning disability impacts my ability to remember math facts and spelling. Even now, those early experiences sometimes echo back in moments of self-doubt—telling me I don’t measure up or that I’m one step away from being “found out.”
That’s why psychological safety with yourself matters. It’s about giving yourself permission to be real—acknowledging those thoughts without letting them define you. It means letting yourself be human: to not have all the answers, to mess up, to learn in your own way—and not beat yourself up for it.
It’s shifting from “What’s wrong with me?” to “What do I need?” or “What can I learn here?” It’s treating yourself with the same compassion and patience you’d offer a close friend. And it’s honoring your own boundaries—knowing it’s okay to say no, to ask for support, and to advocate for what helps you succeed.
Imposter syndrome thrives in silence. But when we speak up, when we create space to be real—not just for others, but for ourselves—we reclaim our power. We remind ourselves that how we learn or how we lead doesn’t have to look like everyone else. And in that, there’s real strength.
