Why taking it easy on people, actually makes things really hard

I once worked on a team that was combative. It was not fun, attrition was high, the hours were long. And the business performance was strong. This is not an endorsement.

I always worked on a team that was accepting. It was rewarding, retention was strong, the hours flew by. And the business performance was strong. This is also not an endorsement.

The issue with each of these teams was that they were on both ends of the spectrum and not in the middle. They achieved success in different ways; one, by unmatched operational efficiency without step-change growth; the other, by large wins but low rigor of daily operations.

The balance that each of these teams struggled with was challenging the team to meet a high bar of excellence while also supporting psychological safety and allowing space. One always came at the expense of the other. But the benefits of each can't be discounted. Psychological safety empowers teams to speak up and share ideas that could be either crazy good or just crazy. But challenge ensures that the quality of deliver is unmatched and helps people to grow by continually clarifying where they can be better.

Go for both.