Leading Through Crisis

You never want a serious crisis to go to waste! What I mean by that is that crisis presents an opportunity to do things that you think you could not do before – Rahm Emmanuel a former Mayor of Chicago.

Last Saturday I was privileged to attend a webinar courtesy of the Marketplace Ekklesia by Kingdom Business Solutions. The webinar was indeed very timely not just because the world is experiencing a pandemic but more specifically to Kenyans after the President had just announced another lock-down the day before in 5 counties, Nairobi County included which is the central business hub.

It was an online gathering of seasoned business leaders and I definitely had my very faithful companions around: My notebook and a pen ready to record my lessons and be sure: I cannot keep the lessons to myself. The panelists were Rachel Mutuku, Joan Kiambati, Stella Urio and Joanita Menya, the conversation was moderated by Kio Mwirigi.

So what does it mean to lead through Crisis? I believe by the end of the article you will have a clear understanding.

Crisis calls out for leaders to step up; both the ones actively in positions of leadership and those that just had it in them it becomes a trigger that changes the course of their lives, either in terms of outlook or better still ushers them into a new dimension of expressing the gifting in them. When confronted with a Goliath, there is a David in you, said Les Brown. While crisis will surprise all of us, it doesn’t Surprise God and with Him our lives are still on schedule regardless. When crisis comes it doesn’t discriminate people but what makes the difference is the source of direction. Crisis will indeed test, stretch and even expose what kind of leadership one is really made of. It is therefore important as a leader to develop your values around truth and not facts because facts change but truth does not change.

Some of the poor decisions that Leaders make in crisis include:

1.      Prioritizing output over input: don’t be in a rush to fire people, keep in mind they are your greatest resource and they actually might have better ideas to keep your business afloat.

2.      Trying to remain the same in the face of change; that’s one sure way of being rendered irrelevant.

3.      Leading with the head versus leading with the heart: Crisis call for authenticity and vulnerability. While it is of essence to be logical and lead with your head, authentic leadership requires the skill of wakefulness and an open mind. This agrees with leading from the heart

What do you do in crisis as a leader?

·        Be calm; your calmness as a leader grounds your people.

·        Assess the situation; see things from a sober point of view

·        Make timely decisions based on the correct assessment keeping in mind that it is a good opportunity to model leadership to your team.

·        Be deliberate and intentional about employee welfare; check in on your employees or team just to know how they are doing.

GOLDEN NUGGETS TO KEEP YOU GROUNDED IN CRISIS

·        Be authentic, allow reality to check in and ask for help when you need help: The leader is not the star in the crisis, welcome solutions from everyone, you will be surprised.

·        Know your limits and recognize when you’re nearing your limits.

·        Have an inner circle because it can get lonely at the top.

·        Be grounded in the Word, Let it be your anchor because it doesn’t change.

Lastly as a leader remember not to react but rather act wisely in the face of crisis

By Lim Hazel,

Lapid Leaders Africa

This post was originally shared by the Author, Lim Hazel on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/leading-through-crisis-lim-hazel/?trackingId=jhkseO8Dzd6fiNE3r8e1hQ%3D%3D