How can you recognize a lack of Psychological Safety in your team? One of the signals is a Value Void. Here’s what that means.
The team was always happy.
The customers weren’t.
A publishing company outsourced part of their editing to a team in India.
Their job was simple but crucial. Spot and remove recurring spelling errors from book manuscripts.
The team seemed happy. Communication was smooth. There were no escalations.
But something was off.
The same spelling errors kept coming back. Over and over.
Every time an edit was made, the same mistakes reappeared.
It didn’t make sense.
Weeks passed. Deadlines slipped. Customers started to notice.
That’s when the digging began.
The person responsible for fixing the errors didn’t actually know how to do it.
He said yes to everything.
Nodded in every meeting.
Delivered nothing of substance.
And no one had challenged him.
No one had asked tough questions.
No one had said, “Show me how you fixed it.”
Why? Because the team was too focused on staying agreeable.
They avoided friction. And in doing so, they avoided results.
The signal
Why is it essential to signal this early?
This is what happens in a Value Void.
When teams avoid real conversations, they lose the ability to challenge each other.
Everything feels calm. But under the surface, value slips away.
Psychological Safety is not about being nice.
It is about being honest.
It means asking the uncomfortable questions and demanding clarity over comfort.
What can you do?
If you recognize this… seek help.
A team that never disagrees may be a team that never delivers.
Value follows truth. Not silence.