Safety In All Things

You Must Be Safe!

Today, I was fortunate enough to observe Maya Tea’s annual Food Safety Training. Caffeine is required as it’s not sexy or exciting. Nobody loves the concentration needed for several hours of scientific data, policies and procedures. But how you do anything is how you do everything. Safety comes first. On so many levels.

Of course, as a food manufacturer, we want our food to be safe for our customers. We provide safe working conditions for our team members. These are absolutes for any company. But can that notion of safety be extended beyond the absolutes?

Safety is the first step in any serious connection, whether personal or professional. Without it, any progress is inefficient at best and usually toxic. There’s no good reason to waste time or energy with people or organizations where a feeling of mutual security cannot be established. Frankly, it’s no fun at all and after 25 years of business, I have nearly zero tolerance for any connection that’s not joyful.

In my experience, good connections start with safety and then build towards trust and joy. It takes one decision and 3 elements to reach that place. The critical decision that must happen first: ONE MUST DECIDE THAT THEY DESERVE TO BE SAFE NO MATTER WHAT. This seems so obvious but is surprisingly overlooked. Lots of people carry guilt and trauma and don’t actually believe that they deserve to be safe. I know this because I was one of those people. After that, there are three things to be practiced: consistency, vulnerability and positivity. These are not something I came up with. It’s all in the science. Check out this podcast that goes into excellent detail.

So many benefits arise from safety, trust and good connections. In business in particular, it allows real movement and achievement for all parties. Team members can be candid with each other or management around challenges or triumphs. Suppliers can be transparent about issues, pricing and opportunities. Customers can be open to revealing their goals, working together to overcome obstacles. I can’t see how any business can truly say they are thriving without the synergies that come from safety.

And then there’s the human side of it. Ultimately, we all face the ups and downs of life. Real connections help us get through them all. We all need our safe circle to be happy. Whether in our business or personal lives.

We’re committed to safety on all levels. It’s just way more enjoyable that way!!

Safety In All Things

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