The Tough Times Playbook: A CEO’s Guide to Navigating Through Crisis – Play 6

The Tough Times Playbook: A CEO’s Guide to Navigating Through Crisis – Play 6

Play 6 – Markets Shift, Be Flexible

  • Team Over Individual
  • Be Ready to Do Whatever is Asked
  • Be Comfortable Being Uncomfortable

When times are uncertain, no one can predict how the world or economy is going to respond and something that should be encouraged from all employees is to keep the team mindset over the individual mentality. During a crisis it takes a village, one person cannot make all things happen and keep the needle moving.

Foster an environment for employees to be willing and able to assist with whatever job is the most crucial, even if it is not their job.  The ability to take an employee from an existing role that does not have a current need and place them into a job that is required to keep the company going has many benefits, with the most important being that you are able to keep your staff employed.

Crises are unpredictable and they bring with them many unknowns.  We need to be comfortable being uncomfortable.  It is not comfortable for an employee to learn a new job on the fly, or to wake up each day not knowing what the day will look like or what ball you might have to dodge, but being okay with this new uncomfortable in the interim, will help you pass through the choppy waters.