The Resilient Business Leader
Today’s businesses frequently grapple with unforeseen, difficult situations like persistent inflation, high operating costs, supply chain disruptions, and cash flow challenges. There are other disruptions as well: the death or illness of the business's leadership, weather-related disasters, COVID, and more.
At Slater Success, we know there are going to be obstacles, whether they be personal, family-related, or business obstacles. It’s not a question of “if” but “when” these challenges present themselves. I’ve come to believe that resilience is how you show up when life and/or business throws you that curve ball. The way a company adapts to and recovers from such potentially damaging events is an indication of its business resilience - its ability to survive and prosper.
“Monday Motivation”
I was recently with a longtime client, and the executive group was discussing this week’s “Monday Motivations.” I looked at the founding partner and smiled because she and I had instituted the Monday Motivation activity during COVID and it’s continued to this day.
Monday Motivation is a great way to inspire your team at the beginning of each week and promote team participation. Each Monday, a different team member is responsible for sharing a motivational message via your internal communications platform, such as Slack or Teams. This could be a quote, a video, or an article. My clients' teams take this initiative seriously, and when someone is facing challenges or difficulties, their colleagues support them by referring back to their Monday Motivation.
Resilience is Turning Obstacles into Opportunities
COVID impacted Slater Success as it did every business everywhere on the planet. It is a great example of a challenge that offers opportunities to explore new ways a business can adapt to adversity. We recognized opportunities brought by the COVID situation and leaned into them.
The drive to participate in business communities was so strong because of what was taken away in the blink of an eye with COVID. Slater Success stepped up by helping to build business communities. For example …
… Within sixty days of the start of COVID, we observed that people were struggling to stay connected to and focused on their companies, while also considering the best course of action to take at the time. We were all living in a chaotic situation, dealing with family members working from various parts of our homes or experiencing true loneliness.
… The free call program went on for the first year of COVID. By providing a platform and encouraging participation in business calls, it helped business leaders stay active and accountable.
… We subsequently built upon the opportunity and transformed the free call program into a round table discussion dealing with current problems and/or issues.
Resilience is a Can-Do Attitude
Attitude is another factor that characterizes resilient business leaders. Some leaders respond to unanticipated events with a ‘Woe is me’ attitude and burying their heads in the sand. More proactive leaders face the obstacle head-on and ask themselves, “What can I do?” I refer to this as a can-do attitude of resilience. It’s in this mindset that true personal and corporate growth can flourish. This is where the true growth of a person and hence a company can flourish.
For more on distinguishing factors that make for successful leaders, we invite you to view our podcast, ‘Seven Traits of Great Leaders’.
The Resilient Business Leader
Wallowing in the negativity of a problem situation serves neither the leader nor provides a teachable moment for the organization to strategize. Accept that there will be both good and bad moments in the life of the business. It’s the responsibility of the leadership team, whether that be managers, Directors, or CEOs, to set the example for resilient solutions.
The proactive resilient business leader will typically invite the team to participate in problem-solution by asking:
“How are you feeling about this challenge?”
“What are your options?”
“How can we shift the situation?”
“Who can I talk this through with?”
We never know when a challenge will arise in business, whether it's internal or external. Yet, leaders always bear the responsibility to model for their teams and employees. How you navigate the challenges -- with clarity, a plan, with an attitude -- is how your people learn from you and about you.
Resilience is another word for who you are, as a leader. The positivity the leader brings to the team and community filters down and translates into resilience.
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