A Safety Tip for a Friend

Several years ago, a friend was experiencing some business challenges. The challenges inspired me to write the following:

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A Safety Tip [few people know]

Despite everything you have done to meet legislation and best practices, some of your people do not feel safe at work.

Abraham Maslow and others have created pictures like this…

 …to explain human needs. Physiological needs come first and Safety needs are next. Safety is the second most-basic human need.

And your people do not feel safe at work.

This has nothing to do with workplace hazards and accidents.

Your people do not feel safe because:

  1. Future Shock – The pace of change is accelerating – we are experiencing the ‘Future Shock‘ Alvin Toffler wrote about 40 years ago: people know relationships in business are much more fragile than they used to be; people are more uncertain about the stability of their place at work; people are inundated with information, Attention Dilemma, etc. 
  1. Economic Recession – The 2008 economic downturn shook people’s confidence and the fact economic doldrums linger on prove people are still shaken. Shaken means uncomfortable, uncomfortable means insecure & unsafe. 

For these 2 [and some other] reasons, your people do not feel safe at work.

If you take a step back from the heat of day-to-day work, you can observe the behaviour that confirms this fact. You can observe increased ‘fight‘ and you can observe increased ‘flight‘. 

Some examples of increased fight

  • increased disharmony at the leadership team level, petty squabbles
  • increased rudeness, name-calling
  • increased complaining
  • increased aggressiveness
 

Some examples of increased flight:

  • people failing to return phone calls
  • people failing to pay bills…and stretching accounts payable
  • people failing to take risks [including spending money]
  • increased use of consensus decisions 
 

Change is Constructive When People Are Comfortable.

To be comfortable…business people must feel safer than they do now.

As a business leader…

What are you doing to make your people feel safer?

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Now, as 2025 has begun with what or many could describe as some chaos, I believe this message is even more pertinent and meaningful.  

Together our conversations can expand solutions and value

We look forward to helping you bring your ideas and solutions to life.
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