What if the phrase “psychological safety” has been getting it wrong all along? In this episode, organizational culture expert Hacia Atherton reframes the conversation entirely — it’s not about creating safe spaces. It’s about creating brave spaces. And for engineering leaders navigating high-pressure environments, that distinction changes everything about how you lead.

Hacia’s background is as unconventional as her approach: she combines accounting, consulting, and positive psychology — and the origin of that third pillar is something she discovered not in a classroom, but during six months in a hospital bed after a near-fatal horse riding accident. That lived experience gives her a perspective on resilience, reframing, and human performance that is impossible to manufacture.

In this conversation, Hacia and James explore why culture problems almost always show up in the numbers first, how leaders unknowingly trigger the people they’re trying to lead, and what it actually takes to help a team stop reacting and start responding — including a concrete conflict mediation framework you can bring to your next difficult conversation.

• Brave spaces, not safe spaces: Psychological safety isn’t about emotional coddling — it’s about whether people can speak up, share ideas, and show up as themselves without shutting down.
• Culture problems are financial problems: Overtime, turnover, and missed KPIs are often symptoms of psychological distress on the team — understanding the story behind the numbers is where the real work begins.
• Leaders don’t always fail from malice: Poor leadership often comes from unexamined personal triggers that no one helped them identify or address — and those blind spots have real consequences for team culture.
• Emotional mastery over emotional intelligence: Knowing you have emotions isn’t enough — the competitive advantage comes from learning to correctly label, interpret, and channel them rather than react from them.
• When people fill in the blanks, they fill them in differently: Lack of information from senior leadership causes middle managers to invent narratives — and those different narratives create friction, misalignment, and culture breakdown.

[00:00] Introduction

[02:38] The psychological story behind the numbers

[06:08] Why people leave managers, not companies

[10:08] Redefining psychological safety — brave spaces vs. safe spaces

[11:27] How to transform workplace culture — the mirror work leaders must do

[13:22] Conflict mediation in practice — a step-by-step framework

[18:43] What new leaders aren’t prepared for

[20:04] How information gaps create culture breakdown

[21:35] Hacia’s personal journey — from near-fatal accident to positive psychology

[26:23] Human competitive advantage in the age of AI

[30:40] Guest question for the host

[32:05] Coach in Your Corner

• Name: Hacia Atherton
• Website: haciaathe​rton.com

Dr. James Bryant, P.E. is an engineering leadership coach, the founder of Engineer Your Success, and the host of the Engineer Your Success Podcast. His mission is to help technical professionals design and live a life where they’re winning at work and at home. Connect with James at engineeryoursuccessnow.com or find him on LinkedIn.

What if you could build an engineering firm where clients actually want to work with you AND top engineers want to work for you? Most firms assume you have to choose – either technical excellence or great relationships. Daniel McCaulley, founder of Ultimus Engineering, proved you can have both.

In this conversation, Daniel shares how he went from corporate engineer to building a multidisciplinary firm with a radically different culture. From his “super nerd athlete” background to implementing “trust to verify” remote work policies, Daniel reveals the systems, hiring practices, and leadership principles that make Ultimus a firm people genuinely enjoy working with – on both sides of the table. If you’ve ever thought engineering has to be stagnant or dry, this episode will challenge that assumption.

Whether you’re building a technical team, starting a consulting practice, or just trying to create better client relationships, you’ll walk away with practical insights on culture-building, remote team management, and why prioritizing faith and family actually strengthens your business.

• Why hiring for “intangible qualities” matters more than trying to train engineers in soft skills they don’t naturally have
• The “trust to verify” approach to remote work management that balances flexibility with accountability
• How offering commission-based compensation to engineers encourages business development and client-facing skills
• The three-tier priority framework (faith, family, work) that prevents burnout and creates sustainable business growth
• Why adapting your leadership style to how each person needs to be led is more effective than using one management approach for everyone

[00:00] Introduction – The “super nerd athlete” origin story
[03:52] How team sports shaped Daniel’s approach to engineering collaboration
[06:06] The dark side of “if you’re not first, you’re last” and managing competitive drive
[12:55] Getting uncomfortable with Toastmasters and developing soft skills
[17:38] Building Ultimus: Creating a customer service-focused engineering firm
[20:49] Hiring philosophy: Finding engineers who already have the intangibles
[25:18] The platinum rule of leadership – treating people how THEY want to be treated
[28:40] Biggest headwind to growth: Finding culture-fit engineers
[30:36] Faith as the foundation: Prioritizing in three tiers
[35:51] Mike flip moment: The “one thing” principle and 80-20 rule

Daniel McCaulley, P.E.
Founder, Ultimus Engineering
Multidisciplinary engineering firm specializing in MEP (Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing), Aquatics Design, and Structural Engineering

Website: ultimus.engineering or ultimusengineering.com

Email: info@ultimusengineering.com

Dr. James Bryant is an engineering leadership coach and host of the Engineer Your Success podcast. He helps technical professionals and engineering leaders win at work and win at home through a philosophy of work-life integration rather than balance. James believes that work and home don’t compete – they work together to create the integrated life you want.

Website: engineeryoursuccessnow.com

• LinkedIn: Dr. James Bryant
• All links: sleek.bio/eyspod

What happens when you’ve maxed out all your retirement accounts and followed every piece of conventional financial advice—but still aren’t sure you’re thinking about money the right way? Dr. Adam Link, founder of Fireweed Capital, brings a rare combination of Silicon Valley engineering leadership experience, multiple company exits, and deep finance expertise to challenge how technical professionals think about wealth, risk, and long-term decisions.

In this conversation, Adam shares why optimizing for low fees might be costing you more than you think, how behavioral psychology sabotages even the smartest engineers during market downturns, and why your financial goals might be setting you up for disappointment. Whether you’re living paycheck to paycheck or sitting on excess wealth wondering “what’s next?”, this episode will shift how you think about the relationship between money and the life you actually want to build.

• Optimizing for low fees alone can cost you more than paying higher fees for better returns—it’s about net results, not minimizing costs
• The biggest financial mistake engineers make isn’t poor investment choices—it’s locking in losses during market downturns because they lack clarity on where they’re going
• Wealth without purpose becomes an endless cycle of “now what?”—defining what you want from life matters more than hitting arbitrary dollar milestones
• The abundance mindset isn’t just about money—it transforms how you approach career growth, time management, and resource allocation in engineering leadership
• “Feeling rich” doesn’t require millions—it starts when you have enough freedom to make choices aligned with what matters to you

• [00:25] Introduction
• [01:43] How money perspective evolves from finance to engineering leadership
• [05:25] What engineering leadership teaches about resource allocation and human emotions
• [10:28] The “I’ve done everything I’ve been told, now what?” challenge
• [12:20] Why you shouldn’t let the tax tail wag the income dog
• [14:50] The fee optimization trap engineers fall into
• [18:43] The $200,000 red number: Why psychology matters more than strategy
• [23:00] The third entrée story: When Adam first felt rich
• [26:28] Coach in Your Corner: What are you optimizing for?

• Name: Dr. Adam Link, Founder of Fireweed Capital
• Connect: fireweedcapital.com | adam@fireweedcapital.com

Dr. James Bryant is an engineering leadership coach and host of the Engineer Your Success podcast. He helps technical professionals and engineering leaders make intentional decisions about how they lead, work, and live—so success in one domain strengthens the other. Learn more at engineeryoursuccessnow.com.