Everyone accepts the idea of a ‘soul’ (https://discover.hubpages.com/entertainment/Songs-With-Soul-in-the-Title ). Like the metaphor of heart (https://safetyrisk.net/do-you-have-the-heart-for-safety/ ), it has been in the Poetics, Art and Musicology (https://safetyrisk.net/understanding-poetics-and-risk/) of human expression for millennia.
There is hardly a group or singer who hasn’t sung about the soul as the source of the human spirit, psyche, desire, intuition, mind, care and yearning. In the news we hear that some ‘souls’ were ‘lost’. A fascinating use of metaphor. Two books I have read recently are a good guide to the use and meaning of the ‘soul’:
- Osmond, S., (2003) Imagining the Soul, A History.
- Von Struckard, K., (2022) A Cultural History of the Soul, Europe and North America from 1870 to the Present.
The word ‘soul’ comes from the Greek/Latin (psyche) and is feminine (gender), as it is in German and Latin. So, no wonder that the language of the soul has been feminine. Indeed, Jung associated the soul with the anima as the unconscious feminine Archetype within males and females.
In Homer, the soul has wings. In Plato, the soul was the immortal. In Aristotle, it was the soul that gave life its imagination and non-material ‘being’. All of the religions have an idea of the soul. In Christianity, a clear distinction was made between the idea of humans having a ‘spirit’ (pneuma) and a ‘soul’.
In safety we speak of ‘souls lost at sea’, as something being ‘soul’ destroying’ and ‘you poor old soul’. We are told that work is ‘good for the soul’
I wrote about this before (https://safetyrisk.net/does-safety-have-a-soul/) but was recently triggered by a number of texts in safety using the word ‘soul’ in their discourse. Here are a few examples:
1. Safety Souls Mobile Application for Emergency Response System (https://www.researchgate.net/publication/343480471_Safety_Souls_Mobile_Application_for_Emergency_Response_System). Here we have a safety app, called ‘safety souls’. An emergency response app. Fascinating.
2. Then we have the video ‘Safety in my Soul’ (https://youtu.be/FsEioiJpgtU?si=V83XtsXBuCqjui6o) on Youtube, singing a song to the wonders of Zero where soul is interpreted as a ‘mindset’, whatever that means. It’s pretty hard to wade through this kind of indoctrination and propaganda.
3. This one explains that OHS is about the ‘glowing soul’ (https://theglowingsoul.life/what-is-ohs). A promotion of an OHS College in Iran. You can join the ‘glowing soul’ here: https://theglowingsoul.life/hamgaman
4. This is about when Leadership Fails the Soul (https://safetyatworkblog.com/2025/10/09/when-leadership-fails-the-soul/) connecting the language of ‘soul’ to moral injury.
5. You can read SOUL in the OHS Observer about ‘Snapshot Of Unique Life’, about photography of Nature. (https://ohsobserver.com/soul/).
6. In this one the soul is anchored to psychological safety (https://www.ohscanada.com/opinions/how-leadership-behaviours-facilitate-psychologically-safe-workplaces/brain-mind-way-soul-and-hope-concept-art-illustration-surreal/). In this piece, brain, mind, heart, soul and hope are all integrated into one.
7. You can get some ‘heart and soul’ coaching (https://heartandsoulcoaching.com.au/home/94-2/) when you need some well-being. Indeed, ;’heart and soul’ are often associated with mental health strategies: https://www.lifeatspotify.com/reports/Heart-And-Soul-Under-The-Spotlight-Report-2022.pdf
8. Some call for the ‘soul’ of safety to be revived (https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/reviving-soul-safety-radical-change-profession-safetyconsultingroup-0z2kc/). Meaning, safety has lost its meaning, purpose and mission.
9. There is a business called ‘soul in the workplace’ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jill-knell-b826b88/) where poor work culture is associated with attacking the soul.
10. The National Retailers Association have program and app called ‘soul safe’ (https://www.nationalretail.org.au/app/uploads/2020/06/How-to-subscribe-to-Soul-Safe%E2%84%A2-1.pdf), a management course.
That might do for a few examples. Why do such an exploration?
In Poetics we look at language and how meaning is created and understood. The way we use metaphor, personification and other parts of speech matters to how we convey meaning in safety. Except Safety is allowed to personify itself, it’s just that I’m not allowed to do so (https://safetyrisk.net/safety-is-not-your-life/).
Language has meaning, you can’t make it mean whatever you want. If you state ‘blame fixes nothing’ then when something goes wrong that slogan will be held against you in a courtroom. Greg Smith discusses this extensively in our free video and audiobook series (https://www.humandymensions.com/product/risky-conversations-audio-book/).
A study of Poetics educates one in the way language is used and in the power of language. You would think that Safety would want to know as much as it could about messaging, apparently not. This is how we end up with sales campaigns and gobbledygook about 1% safer and zero plus one etc.
I can think of many good reasons why the use of the word ‘soul’ make sense. Particularly for its metaphoric and figurative emotional force. I wonder if those who use such language do so strategically or naturally?
If you want to learn more about messaging and Poetics there is the video series here: https://safetyrisk.net/poetics-and-risk/
And, the podcast series here: https://safetyrisk.net/podcast-audio-series-on-poetics-and-risk-14-episodes/
Did Safety ever have a soul? Did it ever have a soul and now it’s lost it? If it had a soul, what was it? I’d be interested in your thoughts.
Prof. Robert Long
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