A leader's response

The voice of leadership, while not ignoring genuine threats, should sound positive and optimistic, believing you will succeed despite obstacles.

A cause is only lost when you believe it is, and even then, only when you give up. The task of leadership is to persevere until you achieve your goal, regardless of the difficulty. Communicate your optimism and transmit those beliefs to your team.

Fear causes people to freeze, take flight, or fight. It's not that leaders aren't afraid, but that they fear the greater danger of doing nothing.

Leaders speak to the real danger, that of leaving the threat unaddressed and unopposed. Courage means taking action and confronting the challenge directly, giving others the courage to do the same.

Chaos and uncertainty make us want to shut down and become disengaged.

The idea of staying calm and focusing on what you can control keeps us engaged and aimed towards a possible solution.

Acting or responding to a situation is always better than mindless reaction, which itself leads to further chaos.

Taking action, even if it is a small asserting of control, keeps us moving forward.

Problems fuel great leaders, providing opportunities to learn and grow to the next level. 

The greater the problem, the hungrier they are for a solution. Leaders like Richard Branson, Elon Musk, and Bill Gates view problems as golden opportunities to disrupt the market and revolutionize the customer experience.

Great leaders acknowledge there is a problem and demonstrate the severity of the problem and the benefit of the solution to stakeholders, partners, and shareholders. 

This way, the leader not only takes responsibility for making the problem transparent, but he or she also explores different dimensions of the problem, consequently benefiting from others’ ideas.

Because Stoics believe that true good resides in a person's character and actions, they would focus on what they can control, not what they can't.

What happens to you is never directly under your control, but your thoughts and actions are. Hence, It's not events that upset you but instead your opinion about the events.

Our judgment that something is really bad or even catastrophic causes our distress.

It's not the new virus that makes us afraid but rather our opinions about it.

Being a leader is a little like being a parent. You have all the best intentions of how great you will be and how you will avoid the mistakes you see other people make.

But, people in a leadership role find it is not that easy; they have too much to do and not enough time; they don't properly think through their priorities; they assume that people beneath them will take care of a lot of problems.

• Think of someone you thought was a bad leader and list any of the negative behaviors they displayed.
• Ask yourself if you share any of those behaviors — score 1 for not likely to 5 for very likely: for instance, someone who kept important information away from employees, a micromanager, a vague communicator, a yeller, someone who didn't keep their word.
• After you identify your potential areas of improvement, make a plan for how you'll work on them.

Great leaders don't hesitate to commit and rarely back out or change their minds unless it is necessary.

Boldness is something you can develop. 

Although some people are naturally more fearless than others, practicing how to be fearless--or at least project fearlessness--is a completely doable task.

Reacting is when we unconsciously experience an emotional trigger and unconsciously express or relieve that emotion. 

However, when we respond, we notice how we are feeling, and we consciously decide how we will respond. 

Research indicates that Emotional Quotient EQ is what determines how successful you will be as a leader. Most leaders get hired because of their IQ, but promoted or fired because of their EQ.

The good EQ allows you to manage your emotions. It enables you to understand your feelings, manage them and then take time to make the right decision. 

The “First 15 Minutes” crisis management checklist:

• focus on the current matter.
• become the trusted voice in this crisis. Designate a crisis team.
• monitor in real-time what the media has to say on the topic.
• get a deeper understanding of the scope of the issue and the vital decisions to be made.
• prepare an initial 'holding statement' in order to make your opinion pubic. Make sure the statement goes viral fast.
• document well before speaking publicly. 

• show humanity, compassion, and concern for any human toll – and mean it. 

• follow up on everything that you have engaged yourself to fulfill.

Dealing with a crisis increases the risk of taking bad decisions. When times get harder:

• don't lie, minimize the situation or make jokes regarding the crisis.
• don't run away from your responsibilities.
• don't hurry to issue a denial unless you have all the facts.
• make positive statements when talking about the matter, rather than negative ones.
• don’t let your fears of liability trump your humanity.
  
• don’t speculate until you fully understand the situation.