This pandemic has given me time to really think about women and their leadership skills. I’ve started my new podcast, the Lead Like a Woman show, where I interview women leaders and ask thoughtful questions about motivation, leadership, and empowerment. It’s been so inspirational thus far!

Amongst all the stories about overcoming adversity, there’s been an underlying theme of leadership. Specifically, what factors contribute to successful leadership during a crisis.

Leading a family, a team, an organization, can be challenging at any time. However, during times of crisis, true leadership characteristics tend to rise to the top. Doing it well is about caring, nurturing, and enhancing others. So I did some research and it turns out that women are stronger leaders during a crisis than men!

According to the study, published in the journal, “Psychology of Women Quarterly,” in times of a crisis, women leaders with their strong interpersonal skills are perceived to be more trustworthy compared to their male counterparts. The trust developed by women leaders with strong interpersonal skills results in better crisis resolution. It was found that when a crisis hits an organization, people trust leaders who behave in relational ways, and especially so when the leaders are women.

The job of a leader during a crisis like this is to assure people, to keep them from panicking. So, what can we, as women, do during a crisis to make sure our families, our teams, and our organizations are cared for and motivated?

1. Don’t ignore the anxiety that people feel. It’s important to acknowledge and validate how people feel, as they’re often operating in survival mode – a natural “fight or flight” response. Empathize with how your people think and feel. Bring it out into the open and make them feel safe talking about it. Fight or flight reactions cause us to stagnate and not act on opportunities. Talking about anxiety and the cause of it, helps create a safe place that leads to safety. And safety creates openness, important for any group or team.
2. Highlight the positive. Sure, there’s a lot of negative information out there. Choose to focus on the positive. I’m not asking you to be irresponsibly optimistic as that can do more harm than good. But emphasizing some of the positive things that have come out of the crisis helps the human soul rebound. Rays of light are out there and should be as much a part of the conversation as any losses we experience.
3. Celebrate all victories, large and small. This means even more recognition of the adaptive actions that get positive results. It’s the small victories, celebrated, that help you persevere and emerge stronger on the other side.
4. Practice transparency. People feel more comfortable when they know the score. Lack of information, positive or negative, breeds doubt and anxiety. Share financial strength, share your ideas, share the load. Uncertainty and ambiguity can be more harmful than the bad news itself. Leaders who can balance the tension of what’s real with what’s possible enable others to move forward with a lighter load.
5. Talk about possibility. Times of crisis can lead to huge opportunity. No matter how intensive past efforts have been, people can always see more opportunities when they’re engaged in the essential threats that are present. Innovation comes when everyone has an opportunity to think creatively about solutions in all areas of life and business.
6. Finally, take care of yourself. A leader who isn’t practicing self-care cannot effectively motivate others. Many of us focus so much on everyone else that we forget how important it is to renew our energy. Spend some time doing what you need to do to be your best self, be it relaxing, taking a walk, reading a book, or a virtual happy hour with the people who make you laugh. Your best is needed right now, so take care of you!

Leadership can be challenging anytime at all, but it’s especially taxing during a global pandemic. Create value by focusing on what you can do to turn adversity into an advantage during times of unprecedented uncertainty. It’s up to us to define reality and create hope in this chaotic environment of challenge and change.

One of my favorite quotes that is particularly relevant right now, is “It doesn’t get easier. You get stronger.”

In this unprecedented time, let us keep connecting to our families, our teams, and our community. Artitudes Design specializes in communication for virtual messaging and events. You + Artitudes = Creative Engagement for your next Virtual Event. artitudesdesign.com/virtual-events/