Of looking forward, real leadership in a crisis and finding opportunities

Every Friday morning I get a newsletter from the Good Things Guy, an initiative started by Brent Lindeque in 2015. Committed to promoting only positive news and inspirational stories, it’s a welcome read when it arrives in the inboxes of his million-plus followers – me included – and especially now when mainstream media news is pretty bleak.

This week’s inspirational quote “Look up and not down. Look forward and not back. Look out and not in, and lend a hand” by Edward Everett Hale is a challenge which, if met, will bring its own rewards. To comply with it will require self-discipline but it’s doable if we implement certain boundaries such as setting time limits on news watching and social media engagements. These are areas that can sap positive energy and leave people feeling afraid and demotivated. My interpretation of looking up and forward is focusing on possibility and opportunity. In any crisis, there are always going to be those who rise to the top on the back of their “can-do” and “will-do” attitudes. (I googled Mr Hale by the way: he was an American author, historian and clergyman who also penned these words: “I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something that I can do.” Also powerful words.

In her article “Real leaders are forged in crisis” which appeared on the Harvard Business Review website, Nancy Koehn shares her findings, the result of two decades of study. (And a shout-out to Harvard at the same time, which has made its coronavirus coverage free for everyone). “Real leaders are not born,” she says, and “the ability to help others triumph over adversity is not written into their genetic code. They are, instead, made. They are forged in crisis. Leaders become “real” when they practice a few key behaviors that gird and inspire people through difficult times. As Covid-19 tears its way through country after country, town after town, neighborhood after neighborhood, here’s what we can learn from how some of history’s iconic leaders acted in the face of great uncertainty, real danger and collective fear.”

Acknowledge people’s fears, then encourage resolve

Nancy urges leaders to be honest with their staff with regard to the challenges they’re facing, and to give them hope that derives from available resources as well as determination, solidarity, strength, shared purpose, humanity, kindness and resilience. “Recognise that most of your employees are anxious about their health, their finances, and, in many cases, their jobs,” she urges. “Explain that you understand how scary things feel, but that you can work together to weather this storm.”

Give people a role and purpose

Real leaders give their employees jobs, she says, citing the example of Reverend Martin Luther King Junior, who “exhorted his followers to sit in, march and otherwise protest against racial discrimination. Other examples include US President “FDR”(Franklin Delano Roosevelt), who asked citizens to keep their money in the banks to avert a banking crisis, and his wife Eleanor who encouraged American women to work in the factories while their menfolk fought in the Second World War.

“In the current crisis,” says Nancy, “leaders must act in a similar fashion – giving their followers direction and reminding them why their work matters. In organisations providing essential services such as government agencies, hospitals, pharmacies, grocery stores, food and healthcare equipment manufacturing plants, news outlets, scientific labs, non-profits serving the poor and many others – this raison d’ etre will be immediately apparent. But it’s still vitally important to emphasise the key role that each person involved in the operation plays.”

Emphasise experimentation and learning

True leadership comes with a commitment to working with and navigating through confusion, she maintains. It about adjusting, improvising and redirecting as the situation changes and new information emerges as well as acknowledging that they’re going to make mistakes, learning as they go.

Tend to energy and emotion – yours and theirs

Crises take a toll on everyone, Koehn says, and they can lead to burnout. That’s why it’s critical for leaders to keep their fingers on the pulses of their employees’ energy and emotions and respond as needed. “When tending to energy and emotion, you must begin with yourself,” she avers. “As a high-ranking executive commented before the pandemic: “If you as the leader flag, everything flags. Everything else, including your organsation’s mission, becomes vulnerable.” In these challenging times, she believes it’s vital for leaders to take good care of themselves physically, emotionally and spiritually. “Know when you are capable of being focused and productive, and when you need a break. Eat well, get enough sleep, exercise regularly, spend time outdoors (six feet away from strangers), connect in person with your partner, kids or animals and virtually with friends and extended family, plan for at least two device-free periods per day (of a minimum of 30 minutes each), and rely on other practices that help you get grounded.”

Koehn also emphasises the need to model the behavior we want to see, using words and actions to show that we’re moving forward with conviction and courage. “It means regularly taking the (figurative) temperature of your team – How are they doing? How are they feeling? What do they need? – so that its members begin to do the same for each other,” she says. “Indicate that you are taking the time to rest and recharge and encourage your employees to do the same. Another quick way to boost morale is by cultivating gratitude. Ask your people to list three things each day for which they feel grateful. And circle back regularly to the three points above: demonstrate resolve, emphasise role and mission, and focus on the opportunity for learning.”

All of us, she concludes, will be remembered for how we managed ourselves and others through this crisis.

Let’s also not forget about the curious healing power of humour. South Africans generally have a wonderful ability to laugh at themselves and if ever there was a time to actively seek out humour, it’s now. In her article “How Humor Can Ease the Stress of Covid-19: It’s OK to Laugh – Even During a Pandemic” on Verywellmind.com, author Sherri Gordon says that while the pandemic is no laughing matter, laughter itself activates feel-good hormones in the brain, reduces stress-related hormones such as cortisol, increases antibodyproducing cells, enhances the T-cells in our immunity systems, and benefits our physical and psychological states. “There also is a physical release that comes through laughter–it’s a cleansing sort of feeling that impacts us both physically and emotionally. Most people feel really good after laughing. In fact, many people report that they feel like a weight has been lifted,” she says. “And, at a time when so much is weighing us down, it can be very therapeutic to engage in some goodnatured humour.” Stay safe!

Ingrid Olivier, Editor