I recently facilitated a session with a group of senior executives. Different industries. Different backgrounds. Different stages of their careers.

Nearly every single person said the same thing when asked how they were feeling: anxious. Uncertain. Burnt out.

It didn't matter where they were in their leadership journey. The feelings were universal.

If senior leaders are struggling with this, your teams are feeling it too.

The Problem: Leaders Treat Anxiety as an HR Issue

For decades, workplace stress has been treated as a personal issue instead of a business-critical risk that merits executive oversight and investment.

Most leaders try to fix anxiety with superficial solutions: wellness apps, mental health days, free lunch, meditation rooms. These things don't hurt. But they don't address the root cause.

When uncertainty hits, employees want answers. If they don’t get them, they’ll make up their own. Usually jumping to the worst case scenario in the process. That speculation erodes trust and compounds anxiety.

The real problem isn't that people are anxious. It's that leaders create environments where people can't be honest about it.

What Actually Creates Anxiety: Uncertainty and Lack of Control

Research shows that when employees don't feel psychologically safe, they make defensive decisions. They choose personally safer alternatives instead of what's best for the organization.

One study found that defensive decision-making costs companies over 10% of annual revenue in forgone opportunities.

That's not an HR problem. That's a leadership problem.

People don't speak up. They don't share concerns. They don't bring forward problems until those problems become crises. They protect themselves instead of contributing fully.

External forces have only made this worse. AI is changing the shape of careers. Economic uncertainty has led to layoffs across industries. One in three employees report concerns about AI's impact on their job security. One in four say AI is creating job uncertainty.

You can't control the world. But you can control what you do as a leader.

What Leaders Can Do: Create Psychological Safety

When employees feel comfortable asking for help, sharing suggestions, or challenging the status quo without fear of negative consequences, organizations innovate faster and adapt better to change.

That's psychological safety.

And it's missing in most organizations.

According to McKinsey research, only 26% of leaders exhibit workplace behaviors that create psychological safety.

That means nearly three out of four leaders are inadvertently creating environments where anxiety thrives.

What Actually Works

Be Honest About Uncertainty

When you can't be certain, be honest. Uncertainty creates anxiety. So does dishonesty.

You don't need to have all the answers. You need to stop pretending you do.

Leaders who admit they're struggling create far more psychological safety than leaders who hide their concerns or project false confidence.

Instead of trying to spin uncertainty into reassurance, focus on bringing clarity to your team's day-to-day work. What can they control? What's their role? What decisions do they need to make this week?

Increase communication. Address concerns and anxieties that may be rumbling under the surface. Don't wait for people to come to you. They won't.

Recognize How Shame Shows Up at Work

You can’t fix anxiety without addressing what fuels it. Shame often hides underneath.

Brené Brown identified 13 ways shame manifests in organizations: back-channeling, favoritism, blaming and finger-pointing, gossiping, bullying, comparison, perfectionism, and more.

These behaviors thrive in environments where people don't feel safe.

If you see these patterns in your organization, it's a signal that anxiety and shame are driving behavior instead of trust and clarity.

Brown's research is clear: there is no courage without vulnerability. If you want a team that takes smart risks and speaks up when things aren't working, you have to model that behavior first.

Use One-on-Ones to Create Safety

One-on-ones are where psychological safety gets built or destroyed. If you’re treating them like status updates or calendar clutter, you’re doing them wrong.

One-on-ones are where you create space for vulnerability. Where you listen. Where you ask questions like "What's worrying you?" or "What am I not seeing?" or "What support do you need?"

Stop missing opportunities to address the anxiety that's actually affecting your team's performance.

Focus on One Step at a Time

Anxiety grows when people feel overwhelmed and stuck.

I have a terrible fear of heights. Once on a family camping trip, I had to rappel down the side of a mountain. When I got to the edge, my knees buckled. I knew it was safe. My kids had just done it. But my body wouldn't cooperate.

The coach who got me down didn't try to convince me it was safe. He helped me focus on one step. One movement. One rope adjustment.

That coach didn’t give me certainty. He gave me focus. That's what great leaders do when their teams are scared or stuck.

Help people identify the one next step they can take. Not the entire solution. Not the five-year plan. Just the next right move.

Progress reduces anxiety. When people feel like they're moving forward—even incrementally—they regain a sense of control.

Ask in your one-on-ones: "What's the one thing you can do this week that will move you closer to where you want to be?" Then help them remove the obstacles in their way.

The Real ROI of Psychological Safety

The data is clear. When employees feel psychologically safe, turnover drops by 51%, employee well-being improves by 68%, and productivity increases by 23%.

Organizations that foster psychological safety see higher engagement among underrepresented groups and better retention across the board.

This isn't soft. This is business-critical. And it’s the number one skill you need to be a great leader right now.

When people feel safe enough to speak up, share concerns, and admit when they're struggling, problems surface before they become crises. Innovation happens. Teams adapt faster.

When they don't feel safe, they shut down. They protect themselves. They leave.

Bottom Line: You Can't Eliminate Anxiety, But You Can Stop Making It Worse

Everyone's anxious. Your team. Your peers. Probably you too.

The world isn't getting more certain. Work isn't getting less complex. Anxiety isn't going away.

But as a leader, you have a choice.

You can pretend everything is fine, project false confidence, and hope people figure it out on their own.

Or you can create conditions where people feel safe enough to be honest about what's hard, ask for help when they need it, and navigate uncertainty together.

Leadership isn't about having all the answers.

It's about not making things worse.