Job Preferences - Slow and Laid-Back, or High-Pressure and Rewarding?

EDIT/S: Just grammar / missed keystrokes.

Hopefully, since this is a broad vibe check scenario, we’re not going against the “No “which offer should I take” posts” rule;

5YOE, recently promoted to Team Lead, with a team of 5 people (3 devs, a QA and a glorified ticket manager / scrum master type role - they’re fantastic, but the title is a workplace giveaway and the bosses are reddit junkies.)

I stepped up to a TL role last year, and it’s fine. There are challenges but I’m social so it’s a good mix of technical and people skills, which I like to grow each of. The problem is where the company is headed. The company is massive, which means progress is slow. It’s the most waterfall of all waterfalls, with the excuse of agile when they feel like mucking us about for their failings in waterfalls. Personally, I don’t adhere to either because nowhere does either well, and I’d rather just embrace the chaos.

However, it’s boring. We’re not making anything interesting, and whatever we do make gets flip flopped on, so net progress has been nothing in 2 years. The good parts are that I can take it pretty easy in this job, I know when I can muck around and slack off (which means work on my own projects on another machine when WFH) and I know when I need to pull my finger out. Taking a new role that’s more exciting would take that time away, be more stressful, require proving myself again etc.

So, assuming the same conditions in every other category, the question is; Would you rather work somewhere dull that you can have a laid back role in, slack a bit, and just call it a job, or would you rather have a high pressure role with a lot of demand on you, but that you’re more engaged with? Why for each? Or something else altogether?

I know this is going to be a bit divisive, so I’m going to emphasise here; I have zero problem working hard when I’m motivated and feel like the work is going somewhere to have something to show - but if it doesn’t, I’m equally ok with collecting a pay cheque and using the spare time to fill my personal cups in other ways.

If also love to hear rhetorics that go against either or both of these. I’ve just turned 30, and staving off the nihilism around life is getting challenging, so I’m trying to embrace more takes and inputs.