Practices for Psychological Safety & Autonomy In Teams

Happy, healthy, high performing teams - how do you create them? Research suggests it takes psychological safety, social connection and autonomy. You are likely to spend more time with your team than your family, so this really matters. This podcast is to share practices that helps teams be real with each other, connect, feel safe to be themselves and do great work. I'm Helen Sanderson and my first podcast series was called A Cup of Teal. It explored self-management practices and shared our learning from Wellbeing Teams. Wellbeing Teams were self-managed teams, inspired by Buurtzorg, supporting people to live well at home and be part of their community. We were 'Outstanding' by CQC, and delivered support to people in teams across the UK for four years. Most of the practices we talk about in this podcast formed part of how Wellbeing Teams worked. However, this podcast is not about self-management. I believe that all teams can grow in psychological safety, deepen connections and more towards greater autonomy. This podcast is for any team leader who wants to learn about the practices that can help, learning from my colleagues, mentors and me.

Last refreshed: July 10th, 2025 at 2:47 AM ⓘ

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Episodes

Using Team Agreements in Recruitment with Sam Jones

What difference could it make if Team Agreements were part of the recruitment, induction and probation process? This is what Sam is experimenting with. Sam Jones is an Associate Director,Locality Impact in North East and Yorkshire at the Stroke Association. To talk more about using Team Agreements in recruitment and practices for psychological safety please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonass...

Jul 03, 2025•12 min•Season 1Ep. 10

Talking team Immunity to Change maps with Diana Cole

What can you do when your team keeps getting stuck with one of their Team Agreements? One option is to use an Immunity to Change map, and in this podcast Diana explains how we did this, and the impact that it had on the team, and what they are doing now. Diana Cole is the CEO at Community, Equality, Disability Action (CEDA). To talk more about using Immunity to Change maps and Team Agreements please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more inf...

Jun 26, 2025•38 min•Season 1Ep. 9

Can you scale Team Agreements? Find out from Martin O'Connor

Can Team Agreements be scaled across an organisation? Martin is a clinical and coaching psychologist in Ireland and talks about how he is introducing Team Agreements at scale and what he is learning from this. To talk more about Team Agreements and practices for psychological safety please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

Jun 19, 2025•27 min•Season 1Ep. 8

A team leaders perspective on Team Agreements with Rachel Owen

Rachel describes how she introduced Team Agreements to Flying Start at the Isle of Anglesey Council. She talks about where the team was at the beginning, what she did and the impact that this has had. A podcast to listen to if you want to hear a team leaders perspective on developing Team Agreements. To talk more about usingTeam Agreements please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com...

Jun 12, 2025•21 min•Season 1Ep. 7

Talking Immunity to Change maps with Barb

If you have imposter syndrome, can you change it? I supported Barb Swartz-Biscaro to develop her Immunity to Change map and in this podcast she talks about they change she wanted to make around her confidence, how she created her map, and the impact of the experiments she did. PS Barb shows that the answer is yes. To talk more about Immunity to Change maps and how they are used in practice please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more inform...

Jun 05, 2025•18 min•Season 1Ep. 6

Talking preventing bullying using Team Agreements with Liza Collins

Liza opened my eyes to the potential of Team Agreements being a potential preventive strategy. Can they help prevent bullying and harassment in the workplace? Liza thinks so and explains why in this podcast. Liza has her own podcast series and you can find her at the Positive Change Podcast on Spotify. To talk more about Team Agreements and practices for psychological safety please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what w...

May 29, 2025•26 min•Season 1Ep. 5

Using Confirmation Practices around roles with Sam Jones

What is it like to start using Confirmation Practices around your roles? In this episode Sam explains what it was like to get started, how she is using them, and the difference they are making. This is what Sam is experimenting with. Sam Jones is an Associate Director,Locality Impact in North East and Yorkshire at the Stroke Association. To talk more about using Confirmation Practices and practices for psychological safety please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensand...

May 22, 2025•20 min•Season 1Ep. 4

Talking about creating Team Agreements with Vicky Ferrier

I spent the day with Vicky and her team supporting them to create their Team Agreements and decide on ways to keep them alive. If you want to know the steps you can take to create Team Agreements, from individual, team to organisation, then this is the podcast to listen to. Vicky Ferrier is the Chief People and Commercial Officer at Konsileo. Konsileo is an innovative, self-managed brokerage team. You can find them at Konsileo.com. To talk more about using Team Agreements please connect with me ...

May 15, 2025•37 min•Season 1Ep. 3

Talking values with Jackie Le Fevre and Alan Williams

What are values and why do they matter in the workplace? Jackie and Alan are the leading thinkers and practitioners around values in the UK. Jackie was one of our national advisors in Wellbeing Teams and helped us to identify and embed our values in the teams. In this podcast we talk about what values are (and are not) and what they can mean in practice in teams and organisations. You can find Dr Jackie Le Fevre at magmaeffect.com, and Alan Williams at servicebrandglobal.com. To talk more about ...

May 08, 2025•45 min•Season 1Ep. 2

Talking psychological safety with Tom Geraghty and Jade Garratt

What is psychological safety, why does it matter and what practices can help? In 2024 I completed an in-depth programme on psychological safety with Tom and Jade and love their informed, considered and practical approach. I highly recommend their newsletter (sign up at psychsafety.com). In this podcast we talk about the importance of social contracts, like team agreements in building psychological safety. To talk more about Psychological Safety and Team Agreements and how they are used in practi...

May 01, 2025•23 min•Season 1Ep. 1

Introducing Confirmation Practices

Confirmation Practices are simple routines for systematic reflective practice. They were developed by Andy Brogan and help individuals and teams hold themselves to account and set goals to keep improving. Confirmation Practices are a way to transform how organisations approach accountability and performance management. They replace what Andy Brogan calls ‘traditional scorekeeping with sense-making’. I have been using them with individuals and teams to reflect on roles, team agreements, meetings,...

Apr 23, 2025•6 min

Introducing Immunity to Change Maps

What do you do when you get stuck on a goal you have been working on? Or a team agreement that the team is struggling with? Could it be that your/their mindset is getting in the way? The Immunity to Change approach developed by Harvard’s Robert Kagan and Lisa Lahey is a way to identify the assumptions (mindset) that gets in the way of making progress, and how to overturn them. This is crucial for leaders at every level. “Many, if not most of the changes you face today and will face tomorrow will...

Apr 23, 2025•4 min

Introducing Team Agreements

Team Agreements are a co-created list of statements that describe the behaviours that the team commits to in their work together. They are a foundation of psychological safety. In these podcasts we talk about the impact of team agreements on how teams work together and how to ensure that they are living, and make a difference to peoples relationships and work, and not just words on a file. To talk more about Team Agreements and how they are used in practice please come and connect with me on Lin...

Apr 23, 2025•2 min

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