“The managerial rule book fails us… when people are searching for meaning and reasons to hope for the future.” So were the views of Dutton, Frost, Worline, Lilius, and Kanov in their January 2002 Harvard Business Review article “Leading in Times of Trauma.” Published just four months after the 9/11 attacks, the authors called for compassion on the part of senior leaders. The opportunity for employees to bring pain into the office, virtually or in-person, is not always seen or encouraged in the workplace. The authors argued compassion for others, particularly by leaders, “not only lessens their (the staff’s) immediate suffering… but enables people and the organization to recover from future setbacks.”
In today’s chaotic state, I would say future setbacks are just around the corner as our lives are disrupted daily in new and ever-changing ways. Compassion for others and for ourselves has become imperative. To read more about self-compassion, go to my last Competitive Edge Report, “Too Tough on Yourself — Try Self-Compassion.”
Technology has allowed us to stay connected with our colleagues, regardless of the issues confronting us. Almost limitless and easy access to data on infections, deaths, and layoffs don’t calm or enrich the brain. It becomes difficult to depersonalize the facts and concentrate on the work. The mandate to work remotely has placed additional challenges on all of us. Active parenting, while simultaneously meeting the demands of the job, has proven hard for even those with the best intentions. I’m not sure most leaders can appreciate or accommodate how hard this is. Bill Gates, in a very transparent interview on CNN, admitted the Gates family was challenged with all this togetherness at home. He disclosed, with a hint of embarrassment, that he was “learning to cope” with the fact he was isolated with his loved ones.
Much was learned from 9/11 as well as from less newsworthy traumas. In this article I focus on the positive, heroic, selfless actions many leaders demonstrated. Let’s look at what they have in common.
Great Leaders in Times of Chaos
Offer Public Expressions of Compassion: Saying, “I am sorry,” and allowing others to freely express and discuss how hard the situation is and how fearful they are, is an essential part of leadership. Attempts are made to accommodate those in the most distress, offering a hand. Anticipating questions and accepting them with an ear of compassion is a beginning.
Show Vulnerability and Humanity: Leaders who admit they’re challenged, emotionally and physically, are much more likely to have the group believe and join with them. To act as if “everything is okay” raises suspicion, distrust, and dislike. Rudolf Giuliani’s comment on 9/11, “This is worse than any of us can imagine” brought him more credibility and support than any scripted speech could have ever earned.
Practice High Visibility and Executive Presence: Nothing says, “I understand, I care, and we’re on it” more than being visible and communicating. In smaller organizations, with one-location staff, this is walking the aisles several times a day, having town meetings, and morning huddles with everyone included. For larger or remote working staff Zoom seems to be the vehicle of choice. Frequency is more important than length. In fact, long meetings are particularly exhausting in hard times. Updates are essential. Nothing stresses people more than the unknown, so, if all the message says is “we don’t know yet but are working on it 24/7” — send it. Executive presence in chaotic times requires the combination and demeanor of a warrior and good parent. Knowing when and how to use both essential personas is what makes a superior leader.
Appreciate People Process Differently: Acknowledge every employee is questioning what happened, why it happened, what role they had in it, and who they might blame, in their own way, time, and place. Allow for this. Some will dive back into the work as a distraction or a way of protecting their job. Naïve or patronizing comments may easily trigger others, and a few will take it to a full-blown emotional state. There is no room for “how we do it here.”
Tap into the Influencers: No one can know or be everything to everyone. Often the person with the most sway is closest to the solution. We all know certain people on the team, regardless of their seniority or time on the job, who have the power of influence over others. This can be what they say, what they do, or whom they associate with. We need to tap into these people for advice, voice, and their credibility within the group.
Demonstrate Capacity for Uncertainty: In his recent HBR article, “You’re not Powerless in the Face of Uncertainty,” Nathan Furr talks about the positives that can arise from working within uncertainty. He believes this ability is innate in some but mostly learned. Leaders with this quality find opportunities and possibilities within the chaos. They share their vision with the team encouraging them to turn frustration into actions — “What could we do right now to make this different?” According to Furr, leaders with this capacity for uncertainty can frame the challenges in a way that it seems more doable and easier to cope, even when it’s a high stakes game. Tolerance, even attraction to uncertainty, can lead to creative solutions. Leaders can foster this in others.
Share a Vision of Conquering: Known by many as “the hero’s journey” this activity creates a story, using real-time events, challenges, and people, as they overcome obstacles to reach their goal. Talented leaders can take the listener on the journey, help them imagine what it will be like and describe to them how success will feel. Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech is a perfect example of the hero journey.
Share Gratitude: Great leaders help others focus on what did not happen, was avoided, that we have one another, and the opportunities presented. They don’t sugarcoat the pain but never fail to show the more positive sides of the present and the future.
Chaotic times call for leadership at all levels in an organization. Certain behaviors such as demonstrating compassion, the capacity for uncertainty, and showing one’s vulnerability, helps everyone tackle challenges, clear hurdles, and find creative solutions to difficult problems. Most importantly, it allows everyone to stay human.
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