5 tactics to lead your team through any crisis.

One of the most difficult moments for any leader is when his team is hit with a crisis situation. This is a scenario which truly tests the leadership and problem-solving skills of any leader. You either come out of the situation as a role model or a sad disappointment. In such situations, it is essential for the leader to maintain his own composure and also navigate the team through the crisis while keeping morale high.

Robert Greene, in his book “The laws of human nature”, provides a comprehensive guide for a leader to tackle a crisis situation. He enunciates the astute tactics a leader must apply to battle such situations.

So, the following are 5 tactics a leader must use to lead his team through any crisis situation:

1. Keep your own morale high.

The leader sets the mood for the team. Each team member unconsciously mirrors the demeanor of the leader. The energies of the leader are contagious. If the leader’s body language is stoic, even the most edgy team member will feel a sense of calm, as if everything is under control. Contrastingly, if the leader panics, anxiety is induced in even the calmest team members.

As a leader, you must be mindful of your demeanor. Your body language should exude confidence. Your discourses should propagate calmness. Always keep a smile on your face. Keep the mood light with some jokes. Always be realistically optimistic. Your demeanor should portray that you actually believe that you will get through this difficult time. This will have a profound effect on the collective mood of the group as well as the morale of individual team members.

2. Be a Mood Observer.

A leader should be highly observant of the mood of each and every team member. This is because as confidence is contagious, so is panic. The panicking of even one team member can have a domino effect and collapse the morale of the entire team.

The leader should observe the body language of each member to ascertain their morale and intervene when he sees it dropping. The tonality and content of the discourses conducted by each team member should be observed to know whether they are confident or getting hopeless. This tactic will provide the leader with insightful analysis of the team morale and help strategize ways to mitigate it.

3. Make everyone feel important.

The prospect of doing something valuable for the team builds confidence and motivates a team member. Contrastingly, the idea that they are not contributing in any way or that their efforts are not providing the team with anything useful can make the team member feel as a liability and demotivate them. This, resultantly, not only lowers their morale but can also spread a defeatist mentality in the team, which will be disastrous.

A leader must tackle this problem in two ways. First, tasks need to be tailored according to the skills of the team member they are assigned to, or the leader should have a firm understanding of the skillset of each individual and assign tasks accordingly. Second, positive reinforcement must be administered. This can mean a word of praise or a material incentive should be rewarded for the successful completion of a task. It can also mean acknowledging the efforts of an individual and motivating them to work harder or affirming your faith in their abilities to succeed. This reinforcement will motivate team members to work harder.

4. Keep the troublemakers placated.

Every team has troublemakers. These can be egoistic, pompous individuals who work less or are too whiny or expect special treatment. Now, it would be better to take strict action against them or kick them out of the team entirely, to save the team from getting polluted by their negativity. However, in times of crises this cannot be afforded as you need all hands onboard.

So, in such a situation a leader should be manipulative enough to placate the narcissistic tendencies of such individuals while drawing out their usefulness for the team. The leader has to temporarily stroke their egos to get them to do the work required at the time. They can be reprimanded once the crisis is averted.

5. Engage the team in team-building exercises.

It is equally important, if not more, for team members to have good relations amongst themselves as they have with their leader. A united team can sail through any storm. It is a leader’s responsibility to ensure unity amongst the team members. This can be done in a variety of ways. Having dinner together can serve as an efficient tactic to ensure team building. Corporations in Japan have a culture of the team having dinner or drinks together, which allows team members to bond with each other ultimately resulting in productivity in the workplace. Apart from that, the team can be engaged in various sports, games, or challenges. People who play together stay together. This team building will ultimately provide the leader with a priceless tool, using which he can subvert any crisis situation.