HOW TO LEAD IN A CRISIS

First, don’t make decisions when you’re emotional. Challenging times can be frightening which can trigger our fight-or-flight response. While there’s nothing wrong with following your instincts, leading a company by sheer guts can backfire badly.

If you’re making decisions, do it from a place of calm. You can achieve this by seeking credible information from reliable sources. During times of adversity, there’s nothing more calming than knowing exactly what it is that you’re up against. This way, you’ll be able to devise a solid strategy.

Transparency and communication

In any kind of relationship, communication is key. This is especially true in the relationship between business leaders and employees.

Much like how accurate information can calm you down, passing that information down to your employees can also help them keep their wits about them. Reliable information gives them a guide as to how to power through their work load even under chaotic circumstances.

But the communication shouldn’t end there. Leaders must also understand that that employees look up to you for guidance. And you, as a leader, are expected to enact policies that ensures the company runs well but, most importantly, introduce measures that cushion the impact of the crisis on your employees. This is of paramount importance because it lets them know that the top brass is concerned about their welfare. This should help them swallow the tough choices that you may have to make on their behalf.

Be malleable

Trying to keep the status quo during a crisis is an exercise in futility. Leaders, therefore, should be able to adjust to the new normal. Whether it means changing suppliers or adjusting the profit margins,

good crisis leaders know what and when to compromise. This should also be true when comes to treating employees. It’s important to acknowledge that crises don’t only affect businesses. They also affect the personal lives of employees as well, so, be ready to go offscript sometimes.

If an employee’s child interrupts a virtual meeting or their dog suddenly jumps on their lap, for example, be prepared to let it slide even if you find it unprofessional. In fact, good crisis leaders might make light of the situation to ensure that everything is okay and that everyone is as comfortable as they can be. The bottom line is that leaders understand that employee priorities, such as family, comes first before the company. Most employees work solely to provide for their families. It’s important that leaders respect that the

company isn’t their number one priority in times of crisis.

Focused

Leaders can be distracted too. Emotions, false information, and even families can divert a business leader’s attention from the problem at hand. So, it’s important to keep track of priorities. Focus on what needs to be done. Like employees, leaders should be able to prioritize properly and divide their attention on the most important things first. If the company is the last on that list then so be it. There’s no point in running a business when you can’t take care of yourself or your own family. With the high-priority aspects of your life taken care of, only then can you focus on planning on what to do with the company. The approach is much the same. Highpriority targets need to be addressed as quickly as possible. During crises, it’s important to become a bigpicture type of leader, one who sees the entire landscape. So, if you used to be the type to dwell on the smallest details, it may be time to put that leadership style on the shelf for a while. Or, if that’s not something that you can easily do, maybe you should look for other perspectives from your colleagues or maybe even hire a business consultant to provide that new perspective for you.

To sum it all up, you need to become a bit of a generalist in times of crisis. You need to be able to take in a lot of information and process them quickly. This should allow you to act accordingly as quickly and as decisively as possible.