In my past, I had the role of on-boarding new people to an environment. I always liked helping new people feel comfortable, kind of like a new kid starting a new school. No one likes the first day of a new job, and it is so helpful to have someone show you around, knowing that you will need to know the “rules” that are not written down anywhere. Sure, there's a handbook, paperwork to fill out, but what about all the things that are intangible? Perhaps this was my natural way of knowing I was an HR person by nature. Helping someone know their way around and putting them at ease, quickly moved them into the space of how they could contribute to the company. After all, a lot of time went in to finding them, interviewing, assessing, background checks, references, etc., and now-it's time to see what they bring to the team.

Part of my “unofficial on-boarding” was relieving these people of their FEAR. After all, everyone starts that job wanting to do their best, show their stuff, and get to work. So, when people are naturally afraid of possibly failing or “looking stupid”, they can't function or free flow. They can't produce because they are stymied or paralyzed a bit by fear.

Once they became at ease, I saw immediately that their posture relaxed, they were more comfortable asking questions, and were genuinely excited to get on to doing something they knew how to do. In other words, now their value starts to show up. Which is after all, why we hired them.

I've been doing Executive Search since 2006 and people have paid significant fees for me to find them just exactly what they wanted in that search. So, when someone starts that job, and the processes are in place to allow that person to “free flow” and contribute exactly what we and the client saw in them, then there's exponential value to that hire.

If we run fear-based environments that prolong fear in work cultures, wouldn't the same principles apply? If you find your people just are not delivering what you know they can do, take a little look at where there may be fear present. Wherever fear shows up, results suffer.

In raising kids, in partnerships/relationships/marriages, and even our current state of experts on infectious disease, when we are afraid to say how we feel or what we know to be true, outcomes suffer.

We've all been through a very fearful year, and I think to some extent the data out there on mental health suffering is part of this free-floating anxiety of fear of stability economically, fear of losing income, and of course the ultimate fear, loss of our life or of those we love.

I have advised work leaders in my Human Resources work as well as in my Executive Search work, on sometimes looking within their own organizations on where they may be leading a fear based culture, and have offered guidance on how to move away and towards a "no fear" culture.

If you have experience with this on either side of the equation, I would love to hear your story and what helped you transform from Big Fear to No Fear.

When we feel safe to be our best, we do our best.