Setting the Bar
Why Clarity, Candour, and High Standards Drive Real Growth
In her book Radical Candor, Kim Scott introduces a deceptively simple yet powerful framework for building strong, trusting relationships at work: Care Personally, Challenge Directly.
Radical Candour isn’t about being brutally honest or ‘nice’. It’s about striking a balance. Leaders often fall into one of two traps: Ruinous Empathy, where they care deeply but avoid giving honest feedback, or Obnoxious Aggression, where they speak blunt truths without regard for the person. Radical Candour occupies the upper-right quadrant — it’s where you tell people the hard truths because you care enough to want them to grow.
When leaders operate with Radical Candour, they foster a culture of continuous improvement, enabling individuals to grow not only within their company but also in their personal lives and careers. Feedback isn’t seen as a personal attack, but as a shared effort toward success. Teams become more resilient, communication becomes clearer, and people stop wasting time navigating interpersonal guesswork.
One of the most critical insights from Scott’s work is this: not giving honest feedback isn’t kindness—it’s neglect. When we shield someone from constructive criticism, we rob them of the opportunity to learn and improve. Radical Candour invites leaders to show that they care by being honest, early, and specific. This is a broader issue, of course, where people avoid conflict or see it as a bad thing, when in fact it is critical:
“Disagreement leads to excellence!”
But feedback is only one part of helping people grow. It must be paired with clarity, direction, and standards, which brings us to the next critical piece of the puzzle.
Beyond Feedback: Set the Bar, Show the Path
Feedback is vital — but it’s not enough on its own. One of the most overlooked responsibilities of leadership is setting clear expectations and holding a high bar, not to be harsh, but to empower people to grow. Go one step further, even — make sure you give people the tools, opportunities, and the literal ladder (such as growth frameworks) to reach that bar.
Of course, it’s always important to balance career growth with a holistic understanding of an individual's circumstances, such as challenges in their personal life and how much they already drive and hold themselves accountable. There will always be people who need to be reminded that they can’t be the best at everything overnight.
When standards are vague or inconsistently applied, people are unclear about what success looks like. Without clarity, even the most well-meaning feedback becomes confusing. Instead, when leaders pair Radical Candour with a high-performance culture — where excellence is expected and taught — teams thrive.
The Hidden Harm of Premature Promotions
In fast-moving organisations, it’s tempting to reward high performers or those with whom you get along and promote them quickly. However, encouraging someone before they’re ready can harm their career more than help it.
Why? Because without the right experiences or skill-building beforehand, people in over-levelled roles often struggle. They don’t learn what’s expected at that level, and they may lack the confidence or opportunity to gain those skills later. Worse, if your organisation hasn’t been holding a consistent bar, setting one later may leave these individuals visibly under it, causing distress, tension, or even derailment.
It could also cause other people to question why they are not receiving promotions when they see someone at the level they aspire to, not performing as you say, but are unaware of the situation. This causes them to become distracted from growing themselves out of a sense of unfairness.
And if they later apply for a similar role at another company, they may find themselves out of their depth without the foundational competencies that role assumes.
Growth Isn’t a Title — It’s a Path
The better way to develop people is through intentional progression. Leaders should work with their team members to define where they want to go, not just in terms of titles, but also in terms of skills and responsibilities. Together, they can chart a path that’s rooted in learning and aligned with business needs.
This requires a manager who isn’t trying to clone themselves, but one who coaches and mentors with the goal of succession and independence. As Sheryl Sandberg (who worked closely with Kim Scott at Google) once said:
“Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence.”
The goal isn’t to hoard knowledge or shape someone in your image — it’s to help them become the best version of themselves, equipped to take on greater challenges when they’re ready. All of this takes time and requires people knowledgeable in that particular discipline. This is why it’s important not to overload your managers with millions of reports and ensure technical managers are technical (otherwise, they can only coach and not mentor).
It is also essential to hire technical leaders who know what good looks like; otherwise, you could end up with a very low bar, as they don’t know any better.
Closing Thoughts
Radical Candour is a mindset shift. It challenges us to stop avoiding discomfort and to lean into truth, empathy, and accountability. But to truly empower people, we must go further. Set a clear bar. Communicate expectations. Make development intentional.
Your people don’t just need honesty — they need a path.
Managers who allow people to get by and do ‘ok’ with low expectations might seem like the nice and easy thing to do in the short term, but ultimately, they are stunting that person's career development and potential in the long run.
Let feedback be the compass, and growth be the journey.
