You’ve heard it. You’ve probably said it. - “We’re like a family here.”

And every time I hear it, I cringe. And every time you say it, you should consider hara-kiri to protect some honour. Because your team and your business is not your family. Your agency, studio, start-up, none of these are built to be a fuzzy feeling. Families are (hopefully) built on unconditional support and undying love. But teams? These are built for performance. For roles, accountability, decisions. For showing up even when it’s not convenient.

Your company doesn’t need to feel like a warm hug. It needs to feel like a sports team. You train, you play to win, you rest, you get benched if needed. You build trust. You learn to pass the ball. And most importantly, you have a shared goal.

Revenue. Market share. Landing that pitch or tender. Winning an award without paying for it. Turning your client’s logo into a case study. Or just... delivering the deck before the meeting starts.

You train for that. You build for that. And you don’t get to opt out just because “it’s been a long week.”

That doesn’t mean you kill kindness, or compassion, or fun. It just means you stop confusing comfort for culture. And you stop excusing underperformance in the name of “we’re like a family.”

The best teams I’ve worked with had heart. But they also had hunger.

So, this is your reminder, lead with empathy, yes. But play to win. Don’t play to be liked. Because, teams don’t thrive on vibes. They thrive on clarity, pressure, and the will to win, not ritually disemboweling themselves.

M.

Since many (that’s three) of you asked — yes, this is now a weekly newsletter, not fortnightly. Yay for you. More writing for me. So, yay for me too.

xx

Manuja

Not for everyone. Never was.