Let’s be realistic: no matter how smart, strong or tenacious you are, it takes more energy than normal to lead your organization through a pandemic. Since you are managing people who are experiencing a wide range of emotions, navigating their ups and downs also draws on your reserves of emotional energy.
What do I mean by this? Each of us only has so much empathy, compassion, passion and positivity to give.
But it gets even more complicated. How do you plan ahead, when you don’t know what “ahead” is? There are so many uncertainties that stretch far beyond the boundaries of your organization, yet impact your organization. So how do you really have any kind of confidence in the decisions you’re making? If you are honest with yourself, it probably makes sense to doubt many of them. There’s an element of that which is true for leaders at all times, but right now it seems exponentially true.
Here are some steps you might consider:
Name this as an issue. At the very least, I urge you to acknowledge the reality of this situation. The emotional toll on all of us in recent times is greater than we may realize or would like to admit. The toll on leaders responsible for the lives and welfare of many others can be even greater. “Naming” the issue is a step in the right direction; that small step alone will help.
Be realistic about what you can handle. It’s possible to be empathetic and still place some boundaries on the emotional or practical burdens you can take on in support of others. For example, instead of sharing every challenge one of your team members has, you might suggest that they narrow their three biggest problems to one.
You could say, “Let’s take the thing you most want to make progress on. I’m happy to be a partner to that. I’m happy to do things if they’re within my power to help alleviate some of the pain and the weight you are dealing with. But just throwing it all on my desk and hoping that I can help solve it all won’t work.”
Talk to someone. If they are wise, therapists have therapists. Coaches have coaches. Find someone who can lighten your load from time to time, even if that simply means talking through your own thoughts and challenges.
Provide your team with other resources. Give them options besides coming to you. Invest in support systems or coaches. Sometimes, others are better equipped to provide the kind of support needed anyway.
Cut down on social media and news. Both are designed to provoke an emotional reaction—remember, good news doesn’t sell—and thus burn up energy when you don’t have much more to burn.