Opportunities in the Downturn

Key Thought:

The author’s premise for this article is that ‘of the many opportunities that arise out of troubled times, the most valuable of all for many businesspeople are the opportunities for personal growth, particularly for developing as a leader.’

Summaries:

What does true leadership under unimaginable stress look like?

1. Be seen early and often. People want to be led.

2. Act fast. It’s amazing how people who would be at one another’s throats in good times will accept that in a crisis, decisions have to be made. leaders in a crisis must not lose their rare opportunity to act. Every instinct tells you to decide more slowly than usual, yet it’s vital to decide more quickly.

3. Show fearlessness. we want our leaders to show us that they’re not afraid. The effective leader announces trouble in unvarnished terms, then explains confidently how it will be defeated. “Show fearlessness, not be fearless” – you should be terrified in such situation, but it didn’t matter.

4. Tell a story that puts the crisis in context. There are two groups of people, those who see stressful events as bad – suffers more, those who see stressful events as normal – do better. The leader helps everyone to respond like the second group.

My Comments:

Opportunity like a crisis pushes leaders to become great from average. It’s up to us to step up and make the difference. In normal times, your superior is not interested in your failure, so we tend to be save. But a crisis offers that chance, it’s up to us to take the chance.

Reference: The Upside of the Downturn, by Geoff Colvin, Fortune Asian Edition, June 8, 2009, page 42-46.