How to Lead in Times of Stres

People need clear, consistent leadership when things seem uncertain.

Leadership and management can be fulfilling, energizing, inspiring, and gratifying, but it’s rarely easy. And that’s because while many people think leadership and management are about getting results, and they are, it’s always about other people.

It’s getting other people to buy into a vision they may or may not believe in. It’s getting other people aligned on goals and direction and then motivating them to achieve those goals and move forward together. It’s managing policy and procedure, performance reviews, budgets, reporting, and a whole host of other tasks that take up time and energy and are in support of other people’s work. It’s identifying individuals’ unique strengths and interests, encouraging and coaching them on their career paths, and doing everything possible to help them succeed. And, it’s doing all these things while also managing one’s own work, career path, and personal well-being. It’s a tall order.

These responsibilities have always existed for those in management and leadership roles, but since COVID, something has shifted. A recent study by Gallup has found that only 48 percent of managers strongly agree that they currently have the skills needed to be exceptional at their job. If true, it’s little wonder managers are more likely than nonmanagers to be burned out, disengaged, and looking for a new job (Wigert & Barrett, 2023). And that doesn’t just impact the managers.

As work expectations have changed, organizations navigate remote and hybrid work, budgets have tightened, and employees are asked to increasingly do more with less, it’s those in management roles, and especially middle-management roles, who carry most of the burden. Add in uncertainties due to a volatile political climate and world events, and it’s a recipe for both individual and organizational disaster.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. Organizations and the individuals leading them shouldn’t put their heads in the sand and pretend these external and internal factors don’t exist. Instead, great leaders acknowledge what’s within their control and double down on supporting and leading their people with clarity, consistency, and kindness. Because, in good times and bad, the work of leadership is always about the people.

Stress on the Upswing

In times of stress, it’s both more challenging and more critical that effective leaders step up. As the quote from novelist James Lane Allen goes, “Adversity does not build character, it reveals it.” Stressful times do not create great leaders; stressful times reveal who the great leaders truly are. And if there is anything everyone is experiencing right now, it’s seemingly never-ending stress.

A recent study by the American Psychological Association found that, while there may be collective agreement that the global pandemic has ended, the long-term stress impacts of it, as well as inflation, climate disasters, and more, are just beginning to reveal themselves (2023). There was a 10-percentage point increase in chronic illnesses, especially among those between the ages of 35 and 44 years, from 2019 to 2023. This same age group also experienced the highest increase in mental health diagnoses, from 31 percent in 2019 to 45 percent in 2023, and those aged 18 to 34 years reported the highest rate of mental illnesses at 50 percent in 2023.

Top stressors across age groups in 2023 included health concerns (65 percent), money (63 percent), and the economy (64 percent). Not surprisingly, the 2024 survey found that the top current stressors are the future of our nation (77 percent), the economy (73 percent), and the 2024 U.S. presidential election (69 percent; American Psychological Association, 2024).

Why do these numbers matter for organizations? Great leaders recognize that there are numerous factors impacting their employees’ abilities to be successful. That does not mean that leaders should be required to be mental health counselors. It means that they should know how to be human with their people, provide support and guidance when it is needed, and recognize that each of their team members is likely carrying a load of stress that can impact organizational and individual outcomes.

What Great Leaders Do—On Good and Bad Days

Great leadership shows up in the good times and when the world is stressful. And that means putting an even greater emphasis on some key characteristics.

It’s always about them. Organizations like to talk in terms of “team.” Great leaders know that the people who work for them are individual human beings and should be treated as such. First and foremost, great leaders make it about them. They put in the time and the effort to get to know their people, as individuals, with individual goals, interests, and concerns that deserve recognition.

It’s always about the organization. Great leaders care about their people and lead with kindness. And that means being clear—with themselves and others—that they are leaders, first, and sometimes that means making difficult organizational decisions. The work of the leader is to achieve organizational goals, with and through the work of the people they lead.

Provide clear direction and hold people accountable. People thrive when they understand what their goals are and how their work will be measured, and when everyone within the organization is held accountable for their work and their behavior. Great leaders provide clear direction and uphold accountability for the team and for individuals, from onboarding to strategic planning to performance reviews.

Choose consistency over chaos. Along those same lines, no one thrives in ambiguity, and there is no greater opportunity for ambiguity than in times of stress. Great leaders provide clear, consistent communication and give people the information they need to be successful. There should never be a question of where the organization is headed or how it intends to get there. If the unofficial motto of the organization is “The only constant here is change,” then there is a problem. And that problem begins and ends with the leader.

Lastly, great leaders recognize that the culture of an organization begins and ends with them. There will always be internal and external stressors that impact the people and the work, and many of those stressors will be beyond the leader’s control. But when they lead from a place of clarity, consistency, and kindness, then the outcomes and the culture will follow.

Source: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/your-awesome-career/202410/how-to-lead-in-times-of-stress