The Key to Crisis Leadership
These are truly unprecedented times. Never in my lifetime have we had to face a global pandemic with all of the physical, relational, financial, and spiritual implications.
So, how does one lead when this is such uncharted territory?
To be sure, there were some immediate steps to be taken as “social distancing” became the order of the day. Church services canceled. Online gatherings offered. Counsel given about staying safe while “being the church.”
The first shock waves of this emotional earthquake have been weathered.
But now that it appears that this will not be a quick or easy fix, how do we help our people prepare for the long haul? Mark it well, people feel harried, confused, and not a little frightened.
Within a matter of days the prevailing mindset of, “This is no big deal. We’ll be back to normal before you know it. Nothing bad is going to happen.” has become, “We’re in a real mess! Things are falling apart! Folks are really going to die!”
Like it or not, this is reality. And people are looking for someone who can help them interpret current events as well as lead them into an uncertain future.
People are looking for someone who can help them interpret current events as well as lead them into an uncertain future.
Arguing about whether the government took adequate action or is handling the situation properly is beside the point. A true crisis is upon us and none of us is immune to its implications.
So how does one lead well in times like these?
One way is to reject both blatant pessimism and blind optimism. Instead, wise leaders embrace balanced realism.
In times like these, wise leaders reject blatant pessimism and blind optimism. Instead, they embrace balanced realism.
The Stockdale Paradox
In his bestseller, Good to Great, author Jim Collins refers to this as the Stockdale Paradox. It’s named for James Stockdale, an American admiral who was captured and imprisoned for seven years during the Vietnam war.
Stockdale’s captors regularly tortured him as well as the other captives. He had no sense of when or if he would ever get out of the prison camp.
It’s been said that we can all survive anything as long as we know it will eventually come to an end. These P.O.W.s had no such assurance.
Stockdale said that the first people to die in captivity were the optimists who kept thinking that things would quickly get better and they’d soon be released.
In sharing this with a surprised Collins, he explained this in more detail:
“The optimists. Yes. They were the ones who always said, ‘We’re going to be out by Christmas.’ Christmas would come and it would go. And they died of a broken heart.”
“This is what I learned from those years in the prison camp. This is a very important lesson. You must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end – which you can never afford to lose – with the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be.”
“At the same time, I never lost faith in the end of the story. never doubted not only that I would get out, but also that I would prevail in the end and turn the experience into the defining event of my life.”
The Key: Balanced Realism
Leadership in times of crisis fails when leaders allow for the extremes of hopeless pessimism or naïve optimism to prevail in the ranks. Both of these are a setup for a heartbreak.
Leadership in times of crisis fails when leaders allow for the extremes of hopeless pessimism or naïve optimism to prevail in the ranks.
Rather, it’s important to embrace a balanced realism.
Confront the brutal facts that define what is in the present.
Hold tight to the hope of what will ultimately be in the future.
Leading in crisis demands balanced realism: confront the brutal facts that define what is in the present and hold tight to the hope of what will ultimately be in the future.
Friends, I don’t know how long or how severe this crisis will be. I do think that “we won’t be released by Christmas” – or in this case, Easter. Rather, COVID-19 will impact life as we know it throughout the rest of 2020. Even if the pandemic subsides, the economic implications will linger.
Those, in my opinion, are the brutal facts that must be confronted and dealt with. Many will get sick. Some will die. Businesses may go bankrupt. Investments will suffer. Life as we know it will never be the same.
By the same token, I firmly believe that this season will not only pass but indeed offer a great opportunity. The gospel will go forth and fall on fertile soil. Thousands will experience the love of God through the sacrifice of His people. And, in the end, we will prevail as the Lord works all things together for good.
Admiral Stockdale came through his ordeal and it became a defining moment of his life. Likewise, this current crisis can be a defining moment for the people in our churches. As they lean into their faith, their spiritual muscles will be exercised and developed as never before. And they will do things they never dreamed they could do.
This current crisis can be a defining moment for the people in our churches. As they lean into their faith, their spiritual muscles will be exercised and developed as never before. And they will do things they never dreamed they could do.
The leaders who “earn their stripes” in this crisis will be the ones who not only believe this themselves, they inspire their people to believe it.
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