You’ve probably been hearing about the deluge of rain and flooding that’s been hitting Texas over the past few days. It’s bad. Luckily for my family and I, the worst flooding is located to the south and west of us. Of course, we are keeping the many victims and their families in our thoughts.
As the rain was falling, the idea for this post came into my head.
Like an impending rainstorm, it is fairly certain that challenges will present themselves at your organizations. No company is perfect. No industry is perfect. No individual is perfect. There will be times when the pressure is seemingly unbearable. That’s part of the human experience and part of operating a business in today’s marketplace.
Here are a few tips on how to mitigate the challenges when they come:
Remember Your Priorities – while putting things off for no reason other than laziness is never acceptable, there will be times when there are valid reasons that projects have to be postponed or even scrapped altogether. During challenging times, it is crucial that you remember your priorities and continue to work on those items despite the obstacles that you are facing. Not everything can be labeled a “priority.” You’ll have to make some difficult decisions. You’ll hurt some feelings along the way. Don’t shirk your responsibilities. Be the decider.
Have a backup plan – contingency plans are a necessity. Have these plans at the ready for the priority list that you have created. It’s important to have responses to at least the most likely obstacles. If you’re planning correctly and have done your due diligence, you already know what the potential shortfalls are.
Get information from multiple sources – if the rains come, don’t be reactionary. It is important to get as much information from a variety of reliable sources. Just as no weather forecast is exactly like another and we look to many sources for the most accurate forecast, the information that you will use to ultimately make decisions should come from multiple channels. Nobody knows everything.
Stay focused – it’s your job to steer the ship through the storms. Even if it’s not in your job description, be the one that remains focused on the important tasks at hand. Panic in private. Persevere in public.
ALL of these are covered in more detail in the ABSURD! Leadership program.
Check it out here!
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