Kim Scott of Radical Candor shares insights of what leaders should be doing during a crisis.
No one went to school or practiced how to be a leader in a worldwide pandemic. But if you are leading a team or a company, you need to understand that your ability to manage other people in this crisis is critical. The one thing you can’t do is manage in the same way you did three months ago. Now you are having virtual meetings and trying to figure out who is on track, who needs help and who is flat out struggling. How you communicate with the “tone and meaning” of your words becomes even more important. So, where do you get leadership crisis knowledge and insights? From someone who has coached a number of leaders.
I turned to Kim Scott, who might be able give us some insights into what leaders should do and what mistakes they need to avoid in our current crisis. Kim Scott is the author of the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller Radical Candor: Be a Kickass Boss without Losing your Humanity and the co-founder of Radical Candor LLC. Kim has been a CEO coach at Dropbox, Qualtrics, Twitter and several other technology companies.
“A crisis demands three things of leaders: compassion, candor and action,” said Kim Scott. “But in the face of a crisis, it's all too human to not show compassion for others, to look hard facts in the face, let alone to be honest with others about them. A leader is a person who is able to rise above these flawed responses to a crisis, and to show compassion, to be candid about the realities, and to act in a way that moves things forward.”
Here are five insights from Kim Scott on what you should not do as a leader.
Not Being Thought Partners. During a crisis, some leaders default to micro- or absentee- management. This is a mistake during the best of times, but during a crisis it’s crucial for leaders to act as thought partners. While both micro- and absentee- managers tend to lack curiosity, this manifests in different ways. A micromanager only sees one way to do things, their way. An absentee manager doesn’t want to know what their employees are doing, which allows them to remain unaware of any problems. During times of uncertainty, it’s vital for leaders to listen, ask questions and remove employee obstacles to success.
Defaulting to Ruinous Empathy. Everyone is on edge right now, and not knowing what’s happening tomorrow can make people feel even more anxious. Some leaders might feel like they should withhold relevant information from their employees in an effort to be kind. This is what I call Ruinous Empathy; not telling someone something they need to know in order to avoid upsetting them. Be as transparent and honest as possible. As soon as you have information that will affect someone on your team, deliver it in a way that’s clear but also kind. If your employees know they can trust you to be honest with them, they’re going to be much more productive.
Acting Like Everything is Business as Usual. Going about your work as if everything is business as usual during a crisis is a mistake. Many people are working from home for the first time while also trying to homeschool their kids or care for parents in far away cities or manage anxiety created by the crisis. Expecting everyone to work the same schedule or complete the same amount of work as they did in the office is unrealistic. Create a proactive forbearance list where you allow each person on your team to identify things they’re NOT going to do so they can focus on what really needs to get done. In addition, allow people to adjust their schedules to work around other priorities.
Not Checking In With Your Team. During this time of physical distancing it’s important to take a moment at the top of each of each video or phone meeting to check in with each other. Ask people how they’re doing, and really listen to their answers. If you have a regular one-on-one meeting with someone each week, consider having more frequent but shorter check ins versus a single meeting. A lot can change in a week, and having more frequent check ins allows you to give your team members the most up-to-date information, and to keep up with what is happening in their life and work.
Not Taking Care of Yourself. In general, we tend to undervalue the emotional labor of being the boss. Leaders are stressed about the future of their companies and the physical and emotional well-being of their employees and their families. While being compassionate is rewarding, it’s also mentally exhausting. Caring for others starts with caring for yourself. Don’t beat yourself up if you’re feeling burned out. Give yourself the break you need. You can’t possibly care personally about others if you don’t care about yourself! If exercise helps you manage stress, work out twice a day, not just once. If you are a person who needs a lot of sleep, try setting your alarm an hour later than usual. Now that you are not going out to eat as much, come up with well-balanced meals that give you the energy you need.
