Do you ever feel like chaos is at work in your organization? Like the wave of negative events and circumstances will never end? Like you are drowning under a BIG MESS? This is how a lot of leaders are feeling these days – overwhelmed. But if you think you have it tough, consider what this leader experienced within 12 months…
Financial mismanagement within his organization
Conflicts of interest among some of his top staff
Non-stop jealousy and squabbling
A large number of people who had little confidence in him
People not doing what they were instructed to do
The loss of a child and almost losing a second one
A spouse who was depressed and spending more money than they earned
External challenges that could destroy his life, leadership, and organization
A constant battle with self-doubt and confidence
Feeling any better now? This leader was Abraham Lincoln, and were it not for his ability to lead even when feeling overwhelmed, our country as we know it would not be here today. When you feel like you are drowning under a hot mess of negative circumstances, these five actions can help you steady yourself and keep moving forward.
1. Find your “Mighty Men and Women.”
In ancient times, before King David was ruler of Israel and Judah, he was on the run from a pathologically jealous king named Saul. He was constantly hunted and was wanted, dead or alive. Yet he had a small group of loyal and intimidating guys called his Mighty Men to support him.
Just like David, every leader needs a small but mighty group of women and men in their life. When they have this group to lean on, they are less likely to allow the big messes to overwhelm and defeat them. Such leaders will last longer, make wiser decisions, and not allow fear to prevent them from leading through the storms.
2. Embrace a mission worthy of some pain.
When some leaders are under pressure, they are quick to quit or at least consider quitting. The heat from the blast furnace of organizational dynamics is too hot and overwhelming for them. But other leaders, while experiencing the same heat, pressure, and risks, refuse to quit. They believe they are called to lead, and the mission of what they are doing is worth the pain.
A friend recently shared that he witnessed a car accident where the people in the vehicle that got hit were going to attack the guy who accidentally hit them. Not only did my friend step in to prevent a bad situation from getting worse, but another stranger sitting in a coffee shop saw it and told his wife, “I need to go hot,” and ran out to help. These are people whose values and life mission are that it is not optional to sit back and watch. They believe they are called to stand up and help others – to “go hot”!
3. Stay focused and start taking action.
I have been helping my daughter and son-in-law rehab a house they bought to make it livable. I feel like I am living in a real-life episode of Extreme Home Makeover, and I am one of the contractors (but with the construction skill level of a seventh grader). The first day, we all had a bit of a daze in our eyes that could be interpreted as, “Where do we even start?!” But we realized that we just needed to start somewhere – NOW. So, each day, we all focused on different projects. Hour by hour. Day by day. One step at a time. The project is finally coming together. If we had not taken baby steps, we would have remained incapacitated and mentally frozen.
If you think too far down the road, the sense of being overwhelmed may result in inaction. In the 1993 film Tombstone, there is a scene where Wyatt Earp, played by Kurt Russell, asks his brother, “You gonna do somethin’ or just stand there and bleed?” Especially in the middle of a hot mess, leaders need to take action, even small ones. And by doing so, they are more likely to experience progress and less likely to stay frozen and be defeated.
4. Remember that transparency is a superpower.
In 2016, a 2-year-old boy named Lane Graves was killed by an alligator while playing near a lagoon at Disney World. The CEO of Disney, Bob Iger, was in China when he received the devastating news. In his memoir The Ride of a Lifetime, he notes that during such crises, companies work to insulate their CEO from the situation, to keep them a layer or two removed from it. To his credit, Iger quickly released a personal statement to the public and then called the family himself. He wrote that, in such conversations, leaders are trained to “give legalistic, corporate responses, but I didn’t care about any of that in this moment. I reiterated to Jay (the father of the boy) that he should call me with anything they needed.”
Bob Iger then sat in his room crying, shaking so hard that his contact lenses fell out. He took additional action by having his team fence off every lagoon and canal in the park (there were hundreds) and posting warning signs at each. He promised the boy’s father that he would do everything he could to ensure it would not happen again, and he did. Genuine and humble transparency, combined with taking decisive action, is a powerful way to work through the messes of leadership.
5. Call upon your faith.
In the Harvard Business Review article “Now Is the Time for Courage,” author Ranjay Gulati talks about the importance faith can play in our leadership. He gives examples such as Cadbury’s John Cadbury, Standard Oil’s John Rockefeller, Walmart’s Sam Walton, and Aflac’s Dan Amos, who have expressed how their Christian faith helped them lead through difficult circumstances. Our faith can help us define our purpose, hone our values, and strengthen our resolve and bravery when big messes emerge.
During World War II, Corrie ten Boom and her family hid Jews from the Nazis. After being discovered and sent to a concentration camp, her faith continued to carry her through the suffering and loss of her own family members. Our faith does not replace our need to make decisions and take decisive action, but it does help us to do so with greater humility, purpose, and discernment.
When leadership feels overwhelming, you don’t have to navigate it alone. Our experienced coaches can help you think clearly and find a path forward through the pressure and chaos. Contact us.
Jay Desko is the President & CEO of The Center Consulting Group and brings experience in the areas of organizational assessment, leadership coaching, decision-making, and strategic questioning. Jay’s degrees include an M.Ed. in Instructional Systems Design from Pennsylvania State University and a Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior and Leadership from The Union Institute.
