Leading Your Team in Times of Crisis

As a team leader, you play an important role in guiding and making important decisions for the team. In that regard, the performance of the team highly depends on your leadership skills, especially in times of major disasters. Depending on how you lead, those you lead can perceive you as authoritative, manipulative, or attractive. If you want to be a good leader, then you should adopt the following qualities.

Top Leadership Strategies to Navigate Hard Times

Make a Plan

A plan keeps employees focused on top priorities, and fights the fear of uncertainty. It can help you to identify and minimize threats, and improve your responses to the same issues over time. Planning also helps you adjust within the shortest time possible, whenever things do not go as per the initial plan.

Lead by Example

Lead from the front by applying your problem-solving skills, instead of giving instructions only. You can also inspire your team members by helping them to brainstorm solutions. Overall, your team members must see, hear and feel your leadership skills.

Have Confidence

As a leader, you must believe in yourself. You must know your strengths and weaknesses, and be transparent as much as possible. To do that, you should share what you know, and admit what you do not know. In doing so, you should be confident enough to let your team members apply their expertise and get credit for it.

Lead with Integrity

As a team leader, you must have strong moral values, in line with the organization’s values and principles. Honesty and transparency are virtues a leader with integrity must-have. This will allow the most productive workers to identify with you either when starting a business or a nonprofit organization.

Practice Proper Communication

Communicating effectively can save time by getting work done efficiently. You must do a follow-up and get back to people to answer their questions. Keep your team updated on new information, even if it is bad news, and update them on the progress you are making during a crisis. You also have to recognize the team’s achievements and reward them if possible.

Surround Yourself with Competent People

In a time of crisis, as a team leader, you must have competent people to get through a storm. Sometimes, you may have to make the hard decision of eliminating incompetent people to “save the ship from sinking”.

Be Loyal

True loyalty means standing up for team members in crisis and conflict. You must learn to care for people. A team leader understands his team members. Team members are the greatest asset to the growth of an organization. The well-being of the team players determines the success of an organization.

Be Accountable

Accepting outcomes whether positive or negative is another quality of a good leader. And just as you would take leadership credit for the good results, you should stand up for the bad outcomes as well. You can then make an effort for the team to learn new skills to achieve the desired results.

Love to Learn, Grow, Expand

As a good leader, you must desire to learn more each day, by interacting with team members. Learn to lean on experts to help you make better decisions. You can do that by shining light on issues that you are not in your area of expertise. Moreover, people with contrary opinions can help you in decision-making because they are good at identifying weak points.

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How to Lead Your Team in Times of Crisis