Exchanging Silence for Safety: Why Courage is the Cornerstone of Healthy Workplaces

The Talk Shop is a fresh space for conversational tips that help you handle everything from daily interactions to complex people challenges. Join over 2000 people and subscribe to the Talk Shop Newsletter on LI or my email list

Personal Reflection: I was told to stay silent. That speaking up about bullying and harm was too uncomfortable. That my view of the world—where we name mistreatment instead of normalizing it—was a barrier to success.

But I kept showing up. In a toxic workplace that slowly unraveled me, I held on to hope. I believed if I just found the right person, they would make it stop. That someone in power would say, "This isn’t okay. You don’t deserve this."

No one did.

Instead, I was met with silence. Warnings to be careful. Pressure to not burn bridges. Fear disguised as professionalism. And I learned:

Silence is not safety. It’s survival.

But I didn’t survive that just to keep quiet.

I speak now—for myself, and for others still swallowing their voice. This article is an invitation to do the same.

In this article, I invite you to look beneath the surface of workplace silence—to examine not just the individual choices people make, but the systemic conditions that make silence feel like the safest, most rational response in a difficult situation.

Why Organizations Prioritize Silence

Organizations often reward quiet compliance over courageous conversation, so much so that it drives even high performers to withhold their voice.

Silence is often seen as stability by many leaders as they interpret the 'absence of conflict' as a sign that all is well. But in reality, silence is often the result of fear, not health. Research shows that healthy teams have more conflict because they feel safe to share their thoughts and opinions without reprisal.

So why do organizations protect silence? Why do leaders defend silence as a measure of success?

• Fear of liability. Acknowledging harm creates legal and reputational risk.
• Desire for control. Open dialogue means less predictability and more emotional complexity.
• Lack of skill. Many leaders simply haven’t been taught how to hold space for hard conversations.
• Protecting the status quo. Calling out harmful behavior often requires challenging power dynamics. That’s a threat to those who benefit from them.

A powerful parallel can be found in Dr. W. Edwards Deming's classic "red bead experiment." In this demonstration, workers are blamed for poor outcomes when the true issue lies with the system itself. No amount of motivation or performance pressure can overcome a flawed structure designed to produce failure. And yet, in many workplaces, leaders double down on controlling behaviors such as threats and micromanaging rather than fixing the root cause that is creating harm.

The result? Harm goes unaddressed. High performers are driven out. Trust erodes. And culture becomes performative, not protective.

When High Performers Choose Silence

Many targets of bullying or exclusion are high achievers. People who care deeply. People who work hard. People who don’t want to make waves. People who are so loyal to the mission that they sacrifice themselves in the process.

So when they become silent - leaders need to start asking questions! The likelihood that they have already brought these concerns forward and tried to talk about them is high - and when they can't get the results they need to continue to perform, they become silent.

This type of silence in the workplace is a leader's worst outcome! Here are some reasons why your high performers may have fallen silent:

• Hope for change. Like me, they believe someone will step in if they just hang on. They are white knuckling it through life right now. Check in on them.
• Fear of retaliation. Speaking up often comes with professional or social cost and they have risked what they feel safe risking.
• Internalized blame. High performers are often gaslit into thinking they are the problem and they no longer feel safe to talk about their concerns ... with anyone. Look for behavior changes like avoiding coffee breaks, taking a different door into the building, and isolating away from others.
• Over-identification with role. When your identity is tied to your job, risking it feels like risking everything.

These individuals carry a double burden: the pain of harm, and the shame of silence. Until leaders and workers realize their silence isn’t the solution. It’s the symptom of the toxic culture, nothing will change.

The Impact on Organizations and Employees

There is no question in my mind that silence corrodes culture. While the world is worried over where people work in this hybrid environment, they should be more concerned about how people are engaging!

When people become silent, leaders can expect that with time, it will lead to:

• Talent loss. High performers leave to preserve their mental health.
• Toxicity as the norm. Bad behavior goes unchecked and becomes embedded.
• Innovation stagnates. Fear stifles creativity and collaboration.
• Reputation risk. When silence breaks, it often breaks publicly and painfully.

For the employee:

• Mental and physical health decline. Prolonged stress takes its toll.
• Loss of confidence and identity. Especially for those who once thrived.
• Disconnection. From self, from values, and from others.

And it's not just anecdotal: According to a recent Harris Poll survey commissioned by Express Employment Professionals, toxic behaviors are rising leading to more silence as company culture erodes:

• 🔹 22% of workers report a rise in meanness at work.
• 🔹 50% of hiring managers say they see more poor behavior now than they did three years ago.
• 🔹 62% of job seekers think companies should remind employees to "be nice."

Courage is the Cornerstone of Healthy Workplaces

Companies must move beyond promoting respectful workplaces through policies and annual training videos.

Courageous leaders understand that growth isn’t a destination, it’s a daily practice. They know that leadership and communication aren’t about perfection, but about presence, humility, and a willingness to learn. Even seasoned leaders get it wrong sometimes, and that doesn’t signal failure, it signals humanity.

Conflict, when approached with courage and curiosity, becomes an opportunity: to learn, to deepen trust, and to strengthen relationships. It’s in those hard moments that true leadership is revealed. It’s not about a bold speech or grand gesture, it’s the everyday actions that create space for honesty, vulnerability, and growth. Here's what it can look like:

• Admitting mistakes without fear of punishment—and modeling that it’s okay to learn out loud.
• Asking hard questions even when the room falls silent, because truth matters more than comfort.
• Inviting feedback—and actually listening without defensiveness, even when it stings.
• Interrupting harmful behavior, even subtly, by saying “That didn’t feel okay. Can we talk about it?”
• Standing beside someone who speaks out, so they’re not left alone in the aftermath.
• Saying “I don’t know” or “I need help” in a culture that idolizes having all the answers.
• Making room for quieter voices, especially from those who’ve historically been silenced.

Courage makes psychological safety possible, because it tells people: “You matter here. Your voice matters here. And this is a place where we don’t punish people for being real.”

Let’s exchange silence for safety. Let’s do the reps. Let’s build the kind of culture you’d want your children to work in.

Reach out. Let’s start the conversation.

Tammy Dunnett

The Talk Shop Ltd

Solving Interpersonal Problems with Interpersonal Solutions so Everyone Can Thrive at Work

Need support with tough conversations? 📬 Message me to explore 1:1 coaching, workshops, or keynotes. I help leaders create workplaces where people want to stay and can thrive. TheTalkShop.ca