By Bill Ryan, tdt One
Life throws us curve balls; they are part of the game. And as much as we would like to pride ourselves on being “prepared and ready” the reality is we are seldom prepared for most of them. This is because, for the most part, we are creatures of comfort; we like things to be predictable, steady, reliable and safe. This is our nature.
When something unexpected does come our way – something we did not see coming – we must process what has happened to us. This process occurs at different rates for different people but, it is necessary for all of us. It goes in stages; five (5) of them to be precise.
First, we go into SHOCK (“Oh, my goodness!”); our world is rocked and we are taken aback. When we recover from the initial shock, we drop into DENIAL, (“No, this can’t be happening! Not to me!”). Then, if and when we are able to move past denial we arrive at BLAME (“So, who’s responsible for this anyway?”). Blame usually lasts quite a while and then it is followed by ANGER which can last for even longer periods of time before we can finally adjust our minds to seeking some kind of RESOLUTION and recovery. This too, is human nature and it is a natural process. We cannot short circuit it. It has to play itself out inside each and every one of us.
Our jobs as leaders in times of crisis, is to recognize that our people are going to be going through all five of these stages. We must recognize they are all going to be going through them each at their own pace. Some are going to move through their processes quickly while others are going to get “locked up” at some stage. Some folks will bounce back and forth between various stages order to get through and process these things. The more unexpected the curve ball is and the more meaningful it is to an individual at their particular time in life, the more devastating and difficult it will be for them to process it to get to resolution.
Our jobs as leaders is to be there for our folks; they need us to give them the time and the psychological “air” to process their emotions, their thoughts and their feelings and help them come to grips with the new realty.
How do we do this?
Communicate. Communicate some more and when you’ve done that – then communicate some more. Employ what we call the “puke favor”. You need to say something so many times you think you are going to puke. That is what it takes in this world today.
Your people need to hear from you daily if not more frequently. They need to hear from you, to tell them openly, honestly and without fluff of false promise what you know. They need to hear what you and the company are doing to address the situation – what actions you are taking to address this new crisis – why these actions are important and what measures you are employing to set goals and to measure progress. They also need to know what you expect of and for them, as well.
“In the absence of information people will make stuff up!” This made-up stuff takes on a reality of its own which seldom leads to good results. In the absence of clear direction and being asked and told what is expected of them, people will assume the worse and they will panic. And nothing good ever comes from that.
Communicate to those with access to email (which is most everyone these days; also find ways to get to those fortunate few who are not addicted to emails) every morning or evening. Invite responses and acknowledge everyone. Help your managers get into this same mode of constant communication. This is not a natural inclination for most people so they will need your help.
Your messages have to be meaningful, timely and above all they must be sincere. If you cannot do these things, find someone in your organization who can and empower them to be the voice of the company. Invite everyone into the conversation and make them part of the solution.
This is not easy work. It is tiring and it can be draining. But, it is worth it. Because on the other side of a crisis – and there will be another side – your people are not going to remember how worried they were during the crisis (that is also part of human nature). What they are going to remember is how their leaders did – or how they did not – listen to them and take care of them when they were in need.
You can do this. This is the most important part of your job. This is why you are a leader.
Bill Ryan
tdt On
wryan@tdtOne.biz
www.linkedin.com/in/bill-ryan-36a5a713/