Skip to content

Tips to Lead Your Team in a Crisis

A leader has to face a crisis at some point in their career. Dealing with the crisis and leading a team through it is an extremely difficult situation, let alone trying to find solutions to the problems that have arisen. Although there is no one perfect solution, Amy C. Edmondson discusses some effective tips to lead your team in a crisis in order to re-establish the balance in this TED Business podcast.

The podcast begins by discussing how almost every day is unpredictable and that no one knows what the next day will bring for us, as well as raising the question of how to lead effectively in such circumstances. Amy C. Edmonson discusses the distinction between leading through an absolute upheaval and leading through everyday change. She compares great leaders to steadfast captains to whom the team turns in a crisis in the hope that they will guide them through the complexities. Despite the fact that there are many advanced tools available to combat the challenges, the complexities that occur these days are so new and urgent that they upend everything that could help to make it difficult for you to lead your team in a crisis.

As one of the first and most important tips, she discusses the importance of communicating with transparency and communicating frequently with your team during a crisis. Regardless of your position in a company, she believes it is critical to instill humility by sharing what you know as a leader and admitting what you don’t know. She believes that honesty fosters psychological safety, which is a critical factor in order to lead your team in a crisis. She believes that communicating when you don’t have the answers is far more important than communicating when you do. She goes on to say that acting quickly in a situation is another important tip to lead your team in a crisis. She believes that inaction causes your team to feel disoriented and insecure. She mentions how leaders must maintain their sense of purpose and value even as their goals and circumstances change. Every decision you make should be guided by a core value, she says.

She suggests giving your team power as one of the final tips to lead your team in a crisis. She emphasizes that sharing power is one of the most effective ways to demonstrate leadership. Recognizing that you cannot do everything alone and asking for help stimulates innovation or provides them with a sense of meaning. It is critical to instil trust and confidence in your team members in order to effectively lead your team during a crisis.

When faced with a challenge or an upheaval, it can be difficult to decide what to do next. It is extremely difficult for you as a leader to lead your team in a crisis, especially if you are unsure of what to do next. Amy C. Edmunson’s advice, in this podcast from TED Business, will undoubtedly help you re-establish a safer and more resilient workplace.

Back To Top