I don't feel safe

(from Vague)

I've been thinking about safety lately, specifically the lack of it. There it sits, right towards the bottom of Maslow's hierarchy of needs, as a "basic need". Based on Maslow's theory, we aren't motivated to do things higher in the hierarchy until a lower stage is "satisfied within the individual".

I briefly considered safety in organizations, the popular "psychological safety" concept. I thought about how it might be one of the primary responsibilities of organizational leaders to foster psychological safety if they want that organization to do creative, innovative work.

But my thoughts quickly moved to this (at least) year-long (so far) lack of safety we've been experiencing as a nation. I thought about the fact that if our civic leaders were doing anything responsible in response to the pandemic, and communicating with those they lead, that would increase our sense of safety, even if the results of their actions were ineffectual. It's the lack of care or communication by leadership that leads to a lack of safety, and then a lack of motivation to do those things that constitute the actualization of our human potential.

So if you find yourself struggling to be creative, or work out, or develop a healthy habit, or read...if you just want to watch old movies and eat cookies...maybe it's not all on you.