Go back to previous page

THE SAFETY NET NEEDED

Author: Ryan Jenkins

Reading time: 5 min

Word Count: 972

Read the news article

How much could your team accomplish if they felt safe they couldn’t fail with a SAFETY NET?

In San Francisco on January 5th 1933 construction began on the Golden Gate Bridge. The chief engineer assigned to the project was Joseph Strauss. Bridge building was extremely dangerous back then and the industry norm was one construction worker would die for every million dollars spent on the project. Considering the high price tag of $35 million to build the Golden Gate Bridge, Strauss was committed to radically reducing the potential loss of life.

Even with immense pressure to finish the project on time and under budget, Strauss invested what would be $2,779,480 in today’s dollars to install a safety net. At that time, it was the most elaborate and expense safety device conceived for a major construction site. The net was strung underneath the entire length of the bridge and extended ten feet on each side of the workspace so that it protected everyone. It resembled the safety nets underneath acrobats that you see today.

“On the Golden Gate Bridge, we had the idea we could cheat death by providing every known safety device for workers,” Strauss wrote in 1937 for The Saturday Evening Post.

On April 28th 1937, Strauss and his team completed the construction of the tallest and longest suspension bridge in the world. They completed the project ahead of schedule, the safety net was said to have increased productivity by 25%, and the construction of the bridge cables was done at a rate four times faster than had been considered possible.

During construction, 19 men accidentally fell into the safety net, collected themselves and then got back to the work. Because of the safety net, workers weren’t focused on their safety but rather their success. Thus productivity and performance soared.

Today’s healthiest organizations find a way to have concurrent commitments to human dignity and performance. They don’t sacrifice the well-being of employees for high performance. They also don’t sacrifice performance to bend to every need of their employees. They strike a balance like Strauss did.

Strauss was a safety pioneer. His efforts set new standards for workers physical safety. The strides made since 1930s to keep workers physically safe has been remarkable. The next safety frontier for leaders to consider is the psychological safety of their team.

Your team likely doesn’t fear death when they arrive at work, but they do fear failure, rejection, burnout, isolation, and other invisible threats.

The brain is always searching and seeking safety. No matter if workers are scaling tall bridges or preparing expense reports, in their gut, down their spinal column and in the deepest recesses of their mind lingers the most fundamental question of humanity. It’s the question the brain is asking five times per second of every day beyond our conscious awareness. The question is, “Am I safe?”

Much like how the Golden Gate Bridge workers experienced more success when they felt safe, when your team feels safe their freed to focus on loftier goals. The unconscious safety alarm in their head is quieted and they can finally show up fully to work not focused on survival but success.

What does safety look like for your team?

One invisible aliment that today’s workers need a safety net for is loneliness. According to my research of over 2,000 global workers, 55% of workers say they experience loneliness at least weekly; with 72% saying at least monthly.

Loneliness not only hinders worker’s health but their performance as well. Lonely workers are 7x more likely to be disengaged at work, 5x more likely to miss work, and 2x more likely to think about quitting. Currently lonely workers have no safety net. They are falling further and further into isolation.

Humans are social creatures. We have a deep desire to be accepted, cared for and involved in meaningful community. These desires were (and continue to be) essential for our survival. Our ancestors who roamed the plains, lived in tribes where becoming separated or banished from the tribe made survival unlikely. Our brains still function the same way at work, when we feel excluded, we become vulnerable and feel unsafe.

Loneliness is invisible, and there is no tangible safety net you can install to catch team members descending into isolation. The safety net comes in the form of psychological safety and creating a connectable culture where people feel comfortable to connect with each other.

The mental health resource workers want most is a more open and accepting culture. Essentially they want psychological safety… a place where they feel that one’s voice is welcome with bad news, questions, concerns, half-baked ideas, and even mistakes.

Teams can be lonely places. People can feel vulnerable and exposed if they believe their teammates don’t support their ideas or appreciate their work. These interpersonal struggles intensify for remote workers who lack the support of a nodding ally across the table in a meeting.

It’s challenging for leaders to create psychological safety because by virtue of their role they have power, and power is a barrier to psychological safety. In order to counterbalance the weight of their powerful role, leaders have to go out of their way to intentionally and strategically build psychological safety. Luckily this safety won’t cost you $2,779,480 like it did Strauss.

When workers feel psychologically secure and protected, their need for belonging is fulfilled and thus loneliness is lessened. Leaders who create psychological safety among a team also reap benefits much like Strauss:

12% increase in productivity
27% reduction in turnover
40% reduction in safety incidents

Just like the 19 bridge workers who bounced back from their falls, lonely workers can rebound out of isolation when the psychological safety net is in place.

Want help creating a more connected workforce? Check out Ryan’s latest Wall Street Journal Bestselling book: Connectable.

Was this article helpful?

Further articles you may enjoy:

(46)

MEET BRONWYN AND DUNCAN HESKETH

Meet Bronwyn and Duncan Hesketh chat with Duane Rockwell about who Speakers Inc and WeSpeak Global are, the history, why they do what they do and more. Bronwyn Hesketh always said that she has THE coolest job on the planet. She gets to work with extraordinary human beings on a daily basis, connecting them with audiences […]

January 2, 2023

(14)

Upskill Your Workforce with AI

Upskill Your Workforce with AI: The Keynote Speakers Leading the Charge In today’s digitally charged world, artificial intelligence isn’t just a trend, it’s a transformation. The real question facing businesses isn’t if they should embrace AI, but how fast they can reskill and upskill their teams to stay relevant in an AI-first economy. Corporate learning […]

July 23, 2025

Branding Benefits Professional Women

Branding Benefits Professional Women in leadership roles manage their Personal Brands on a daily basis; and they started focusing on creating theirs early-on in their careers. Why do they focus on Personal Branding? And why has it become such a hot topic in the workforce today? Smart women in business understand the basic concept that […]

December 19, 2022

DESIREE-ANNE MARTIN | MEET THE SPEAKER

Desiree-Anne Martin believes in the inherent ability of anyone to change. Her mantra is that there is hope, always, and she is a Change Catalyst and Inspirational Speaker. Desiree-Anne is a prize-winning published author and poet. Her writing on racial identification, GBV, the myths of parenthood, sex and feminism has appeared in numerous print anthologies […]

January 2, 2023

Be grateful for the bumpy ride

Kevin Gaskell seems to be meeting more and more people in business at the moment who are concerned that the economy is a bumpy ride and unpredictable. You can certainly feel a lot of turbulence in the air; Brexit, Trump, FX rates, inflation, Russia, Middle East, fake news etc. The truth is that if you […]

January 13, 2023

(69)

The Psychology of Attendee Behavior

The Psychology of Attendee Behavior: What Drives Engagement? In the ever-evolving world of event planning, one question remains at the core of success: What truly drives attendee engagement? Understanding what keeps people interested, active, and returning to events is both an art and a science. By leveraging The Psychology of Attendee Behavior science principles, event […]

February 19, 2025

(17)

Master the Art of Influence?

Want Your Audience to Master the Art of Influence? Bring in a speaker who turns “maybe” into “yes.” Because in today’s world, negotiation isn’t just a skill—it’s survival to Master the Art of Influence. 💼 Whether it’s closing deals, navigating conflict, or leading with confidence, your audience needs to know how to negotiate like pros. […]

April 14, 2025

(39)

How to Book an Event Host

How to Book an Event Host when you Imagine this: you’ve spent months planning the perfect event. You’ve secured a stunning venue, curated an impressive guest list, and scheduled remarkable speakers. But when the big day arrives, something feels off. Transitions are clunky, the energy dips, and the audience starts to disengage. How to Book […]

December 6, 2024

Scroll Up

THE SAFETY NET NEEDED

Further articles you may enjoy:

Subscribe to our Newsletter and get connected: