The emergency room is a place that no one wants to be. That has always been true but it feels like it is even more true now under our current circumstances. For me, I've been to the emergency room plenty of times, but mostly for getting myself or my adventurous children stitched up. But, I have never had a crisis situation in an emergency room. I have never had that crisis experience that required me to wait while a loved in a life-threatening state was wheeled back to be examined, tested, or operated on. It is a heart-wrenching mental image that many have had to endure. It also gives a strong picture of how important communication can be during crisis. In those moments of crisis the communication from the doctor is so important. Family members in the waiting room are desperate to hear from the doctor. They stand quickly and go meet the doctor when he enters the room. They cling to every word the doctor delivers when she enters the waiting room. I think there is a lot for leaders to learn about crisis communication from the clear visual of an emergency room doctor.
Four lessons on crisis communication for leaders:
1 - There is no such thing as too many visits. When crisis has hit a family, they want the emergency room doctor around a lot. There is subconscious comfort in the presence of the person that has access to the information and is positioned to influence what the future might look like. During crisis, leaders need to visit and engage their people often. (in-person, phone calls, text messages)
2 - There is no such thing as too much communication. A often used quote is that 'no news is good news', and it DOES NOT APPLY DURING CRISIS. Leaders need to communicate all the time during crisis. This includes replying quickly to every text, email, and phone call that comes in from the people they are responsible to lead. People hearing the voice, seeing the face, and reading the words of the leader regularly during crisis reassures them that someone is looking out for them.
3 - The facts are good and speculation can be bad. An emergency room doctor can develop trust quickly based upon how timely they share facts. They can also destroy trust by predicting the outcomes of those facts because during crisis the outcome is very uncertain. That's one of the reasons it is a crisis! Communicating facts without speculating is a very thin line. Leaders must walk this thin line well during crisis. It is important that the communication of leaders be grounded in the facts and that they plan according to the facts so that communication during crisis develops trust.
4 - When there are no good answers, ask what else can be done. There are times during crisis when there is just no path forward. You do not quit, you do not give in, but your hands are also tied. You are simply stuck waiting something out. When faced with this situation, a good emergency room doctor looks to meet basic needs of people. 'Can I get you something to eat?' 'When is the last time you slept?' 'Is there someone I can call for you?'. The doctor focuses on solving what can actually be solved. A leader that is stuck in crisis must quickly default to 'what can I do for you?' It is at that moment that the leader can galvanize people to stay together when the crisis could tear them apart. It is important to make plans and successfully push through crisis. It is MORE important to take care of people along the way.
Leaders, we are in crisis mode and have been for months. I encourage you to go walk out into the emergency room and lead your people by communicating well with them.
Dr. Chris Hobbs is an educational leader and Director of Athletics at The King’s Academy in West Palm Beach, Florida. He’s earned a few degrees and won some awards. He’s happily married to his high school sweetheart and they have three teen age children. Life is messy and complicated most of the time. You can follow him on Twitter for all sorts of inspirational thoughts and good laughs.
Four lessons on crisis communication for leaders:
1 - There is no such thing as too many visits. When crisis has hit a family, they want the emergency room doctor around a lot. There is subconscious comfort in the presence of the person that has access to the information and is positioned to influence what the future might look like. During crisis, leaders need to visit and engage their people often. (in-person, phone calls, text messages)
2 - There is no such thing as too much communication. A often used quote is that 'no news is good news', and it DOES NOT APPLY DURING CRISIS. Leaders need to communicate all the time during crisis. This includes replying quickly to every text, email, and phone call that comes in from the people they are responsible to lead. People hearing the voice, seeing the face, and reading the words of the leader regularly during crisis reassures them that someone is looking out for them.
3 - The facts are good and speculation can be bad. An emergency room doctor can develop trust quickly based upon how timely they share facts. They can also destroy trust by predicting the outcomes of those facts because during crisis the outcome is very uncertain. That's one of the reasons it is a crisis! Communicating facts without speculating is a very thin line. Leaders must walk this thin line well during crisis. It is important that the communication of leaders be grounded in the facts and that they plan according to the facts so that communication during crisis develops trust.
4 - When there are no good answers, ask what else can be done. There are times during crisis when there is just no path forward. You do not quit, you do not give in, but your hands are also tied. You are simply stuck waiting something out. When faced with this situation, a good emergency room doctor looks to meet basic needs of people. 'Can I get you something to eat?' 'When is the last time you slept?' 'Is there someone I can call for you?'. The doctor focuses on solving what can actually be solved. A leader that is stuck in crisis must quickly default to 'what can I do for you?' It is at that moment that the leader can galvanize people to stay together when the crisis could tear them apart. It is important to make plans and successfully push through crisis. It is MORE important to take care of people along the way.
Leaders, we are in crisis mode and have been for months. I encourage you to go walk out into the emergency room and lead your people by communicating well with them.
Dr. Chris Hobbs is an educational leader and Director of Athletics at The King’s Academy in West Palm Beach, Florida. He’s earned a few degrees and won some awards. He’s happily married to his high school sweetheart and they have three teen age children. Life is messy and complicated most of the time. You can follow him on Twitter for all sorts of inspirational thoughts and good laughs.
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