As a team leader, are you a thermometer or a thermostat?
Aug 13, 2025As a team leader, are you a thermometer or a thermostat?
A thermometer simply reflects the temperature in the room. It reacts to the existing mood -the stress, the frustration, the creative energy. Your role is reactive.
A thermostat, on the other hand, sets the temperature. It actively influences the environment to create the ideal conditions for what needs to happen. Your role becomes pro-active.
A team will only dare to operate in the 'Stretch Zone' if there is a deep sense of psychological safety. That is the team leader's primary job: to be the thermostat.
But how do you know the real temperature of your team?
Try this simple check-in:
👉 Are people naming challenges - or avoiding them?
👉 Are they asking each other questions -or only you?
👉 Are they asking each other for help — or just you?
👉 Do they celebrate risk - or only results?
Your answers don’t just reveal culture. They reveal temperature. If it’s too cold (fear, silence), nothing grows. If it’s too hot (chaos, panic), people shut down.
So, how do you adjust the dial?
Tomorrow, I'll share three concrete actions every 'thermostat-leader' takes to create the perfect climate for growth.
