Leading in tumultuous times

Photo credit: Christopher Rusev on Unsplash

As a life coach, entrepreneur, and the wife of a CEO, I understand the importance of leadership in challenging moments. Living through this pandemic, in a way, can be seen as an art, one where you put your creativity and courage to work to create a masterpiece. Every leader on this planet is, at this very moment, not only leading their family but is also leading their organizations through uncertainty.

At any company, being a true leader, coping with one’s own emotions and frustrations—all the while inspiring others to realize their potential—is definitely not easy, especially considering that those same individuals might also be carrying baggage of their own. If we look up ways to describe the qualities of a true leader the attributes seem to be endless. Beyond connecting with others and motivating them to realize their potential, leaders also honor and communicate their values. They build ecosystems of open communication and clear rules.

Leaders have no filters and they are able to communicate their own vulnerability in such a way that validates and inspires their team. These individuals lead by example. They listen and they are patient. Their honesty and no judgement approach allows them to understand the thoughts and feelings of those around them. A true leader wants the best for all and their mindset is “we all win.” Because of this, the atmosphere they create around themselves is one of wellbeing.

Having described a true leader, we might now think that these qualities describe Wonder Woman or Superman. You know, the noble-hearted one with super-natural powers and perfect abilities who saves the world from uncertainty. We may also think of the captain of the major league team and their ability to lead their players to the winning finish line.

If the world was playing at the major league game, how can we bring our team—our community— closer together by applying the attributes of a leader?

With the current pandemic global situation, we were and are all triggered in one way or the other. The rules of the game are in constant flux and if you also have an organization that includes an international operation it might even be more challenging. You are not only becoming a master in managing the uncertain current variables, but also a master of understanding the rules of the game, and in understanding the opportunity uncertainty sometimes brings in other markets and in ours.

The leaders of the “pandemia” shifted out of their comfort zone and they were triggered on both personal and professional levels. In survival mode, we do not think and our default mode kicks in by instinct and this can obstruct our grand plan. Anyone in default mode might place us in conflict or leave us in a victim stage. By embracing this perspective, however, there is no responsibility and no light for opportunity.

Please understand that I feel all these behaviors are normal reactions to challenges. Let’s have some clarity on the following though: without awareness and a path, we tap into a mindset of lack of control and survival mode. With clear-headed awareness of our circumstances, we can shift and move into the zone of confidence—it’s a space where we know that our actions are the ones that will contribute to our vision. When we feel this confidence, we choose to incorporate those habits that over time convert into skills that will give us the strength to embrace daily challenges, helping us know what to do.

All of this said, what do we do in moments we feel challenged or triggered? The very first step is to recognize that we are being triggered. After this awareness, we can then connect to our story and goals, for a big picture view, and observe if our current actions are sabotaging us or are helping us move forward. 

I do not want to go into details with our sabotage factors, because there are so many that they might require further exploration, however, we can all recognize that sabotage exists when we have actions, behaviors and/or feelings that contradict our intentions and our grand plan. Observing and doing something about this type of  behavior will clear up the mind and will reroute us toward positive thoughts.

Tapping into positive thoughts, honoring our values and shifting into a “we” or "team mindset” is what will enable us to change our perspective and visualize opportunities for ourselves and for our team. The invitation is not easy but is simple: find your light and find your inner power to get out and do something constructive about your situation in life.

So, let me ask you. . . what do you really want? Take into consideration that our minds are so powerful. We can all find our zone of genius; we just need to be courage enough to create our own journey. The secret lies within us.

As a coach I love to bring insights. Insights are what usually opens a new path in my clients minds so that they can start creating a new route. To be able to navigate new avenues, en route to our grand goals, we need to quiet our minds and then listen to our inner voice. In doing so, we can observe what is happening to us, during this tumultuous time, and adapt our current choices so that our constructive actions propel us to where we’d like to be.