Leadership in the time of Coronavirus! Being a Leader can be more dramatic than a Gabriel García Márquez novel. At the moment I’m taking any number of calls from leaders struggling to make sense of these events, struggling in their role, and struggling with their personal fears, whatever they may be. This is the privilege of doing what I do, supporting the very top leaders and organisations around the world. Leadership has many facets and right now we are all having to face one of the most challenging - leading in tough times. Uncertain times. Unprecedented times. Yet these[...]
We’ve all read the estimations of economists and governments, both the sanguine and the dramatic. The potential loss of life, loss of spirit, loss to our economies, businesses and bank accounts. But before we get scared or even paranoid about the future, let’s take a moment to think. Is the future post-corona so dark and gloomy as it seems? As our leaders and media would have us believe? In my opinion the light at the end of the tunnel has never been brighter! Commentators have already described Corona as a once in a lifetime event. Several standard deviations from any norm. [...]
In times of great chaos and instability, it’s perfectly normal to feel scared and disoriented. The Covid-19 pandemic and its consequences have been hitting us hard, we’re all more anxious and stressed. We feel vulnerable regarding our physical and mental health, but also about our financial stability. Whether you’re employed in a multi-national or running your own small business, the responsibilities we all have to those around us – our teams, our customers, our broader stakeholders – are significant and hence our ability to let our concerns, worries or fears get [...]
Understandably, Covid-19 has created a state of general panic. That panic primarily relates to both the fear of getting sick or losing loved ones, but also the very threat to the global economy, to our businesses and organisations, and to our own jobs, careers and livelihoods. All of us, however wealthy we may be, and whatever resources we may command, have reason to be concerned. And of course, for the vast majority of us, the financial implications are extremely real. Many of us around the world have already been laid off from work, if not made redundant. Many more are being forced to work [...]
Burnout is a syndrome typically associated with high pressure working environments and chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed (WHO, 2019). The current global situation generated from the pandemic spread of Covid-19 is cause of extreme stress and overall anxiety. Burnout is playing a massive role among people who are fighting the virus on the front line. And even if you’re not a nurse or working in a factory producing respirators, the pressure is rising and the risk is to be blown away with it. If you’ve - sadly - lost someone or you’re worried [...]
Social distancing’ and ‘Self-isolation’ aren’t merely the latest voluminous hashtags. They’re the critical behaviours we’re all needing to rapidly adopt for our species to adapt and survive! Yet, of course, the biz-show must go on as best we can. And for many businesses that means adopting an apparently simple solution: smart working. But as a person who’s smart worked for almost 15 years, let me tell you, after the honeymoon period wears off, unless you’re savvy and smart, it's not always the fun it's cracked up to be! Like many others [...]
Our Global Economy is a Corona Victim. But for How Long? This unprecedented health scare has had similarly unprecedented economic repercussions, impacting individuals, communities, businesses, organisations, governments and nations. No-one is untouched, economically or financially at this point. Corona is already becoming a grand leveller.And whether we like to acknowledge it or not, most of the experts are just as disordered and perplexed. At this stage, while there is plenty of speculation, there’s no meaningful clarity on what the true impact might be on our economies and our [...]
Wherever you may currently be, checking the news day to day has rarely been more frightening. Social, political and economic panic. Financial market volatility. The daily count of those at risk, infected, and now dead. We’re all facing tough decisions and anxiety and for many of us the temptation is simply to hide. Hide from the news, hide from social interaction, hide from a world where survival became that much more risky overnight. It is scary, and it’s absolutely okay to be worried or anxious. However, we must also be calm, decisive and resolute, rather than being petrified by [...]
As we all now know, on 11th March, Coronavirus, aka Covid-19, became a pandemic, as declared by the World Health Organization (WHO). There’s no reason to panic - here are the general best practice guidelines advised by WHO to reduce the potential health risks. In many countries self-isolation is already a fact of life. And if you’re in a country where it’s not yet, get ready! Here’s the best guidance I’ve found on the practicalities of how to self-isolate, published by the government of New Zealand. Psychological Dangers However, one of the topics not yet fully [...]
