by Chet Scott, Built to Lead

Do not forget these guiding truths for leaders who are leading anything in a time of crisis.

Great leadership understands the complexities of their system and has crystal clarity of their overarching vision, their aim. Great leadership knows why it matters and lives their purpose with passion, patience, and relentless pursuit of excellence. Great leadership has five to ten unifying strategies that make the complex understandable and actionable. Great leadership focuses themselves and their teams on clear, concise, direct PA (productive action).

During crisis, leader, remember to understand all the complexities in and around your system. Be a master at making the complex on top, simple on bottom. Master clear, concise, direct communications. Humans hear horribly in crisis so keep it simple when talking with them. “Stop this. Focus here. Never stop attacking.” Anybody can make the complex complicated. Your job is to take the complex and make it simple for your team to act. Ambiguity is the enemy. Clarity is key. Make sense?

Live hard. Love harder…

Chet Scott is part of the Built to Lead Team. Built to Lead works with the Leadership Track at Pregnancy Help Institute each summer. This article originally appeared here at the Built to Lead blog.