Balancing exceptional results and personal wellness.

I find that effective leaders walk a tightrope between balancing the drive for exceptional results, while also promoting wellness and psychological safety. This balancing act is an elusive thing.

I grapple with these two, sometimes conflicting priorities: driving exceptional results, while also having everyone come to work fresh, excited and motivated. Both are genuinely important to me. I am motivated by pursuing excellence, and I believe that having fun and finding joy in work shouldn't be compromised. I realize that we all have competing work priorities, family commitments, personal matters, and passions that keep us whole. It is this balance that gives us energy and fortifies us emotionally.

Still, the question remains: when to hit the gas and get results, and when to respect personal boundaries and support general wellness on a team? These are the best answers I've collected so far.

Build Personal Relationships: "Personal" meaning understanding the unique signals that each person radiates. This is to provide enough familiarity to identify an honest subtle cry for help. Some of us hate asking for help and will only ring the alarm when stress bubbles over into crisis territory. Others are much more direct and willing to provide continuous feedback. Understanding each person's communication "tells" is a great guide, especially for those who are more stoic.

Encourage Candor & Communication: Giving permission to alert one another when pressure is becoming unmanageable, then rewarding candor with nonjudgement and calm acceptance. On the other side, this is also about labelling a situation as urgent without hesitation, so priorities can be re-organized quickly.

Request Trust: Trusting the individual and their work ethic. Trusting that things will get done to a high standard, and if not, this will be communicated early. This seems like a routine trust agreement but often becomes more complicated during times of high intensity.

Reserving Space & Time for Wellness: When in crisis mode, it's important to reserve space for the person, their emotions, their feelings and their wellness. Even if immediate support isn't possible, reserving space and time in the future can make a meaningful difference. Saying, "Once we get through this situation, let's take time to work through what's come up". Then making the time to see that commitment through on the other side.

Exercising Servant Leadership: In times of looming deadlines and heavy workloads, a leader must be willing to sacrifice their time to serve the team. This usually translates to taking on extra work on the weekend or late nights. Providing this immediate, hands-on value when a team member is facing urgency is the purest form of "we're in this together". This approach should be driven by a genuine desire to help and care for others, not by a quest for martyrdom.

As I reflect on the balance between achieving results and supporting people, I often find myself with more questions than answers. While the ideal is to support people and drive results simultaneously, the reality is they are often at tension with one another. The closer I get to clarity, the more I realize how far I am from forming a concrete belief. Over time, I’ve learned that sharing my personal approach is a meaningful starting point—it helps clarify my intentions with others. Yet, despite years of exploring this topic, I’ve never encountered a definitive answer. That’s led me to believe that the act of seeking may, in itself, be the closest we come to resolution.