| A crisis is defined as a time of intense difficulty or | | | | comfort in the crisis but you still have to face the |
| danger. In the case of diseases, it is the turning point | | | | real crisis you are hiding under the carpet. |
| of a disease, when it becomes clear whether the | | | | 5. Get Ideas from your team - As a leader you may |
| patient will recover or not. It is evident in the | | | | not be the only one to prescribe the way out of the |
| definition that a crisis is not a desirable state. One | | | | crisis. |
| would choose not to have to solve a crisis and a live | | | | You may not be the cause of the crisis after all. Your |
| a crisis-free life but that is not possible. Daily you | | | | role is to get everyone to see the same thing and |
| meet crisis of varying shapes, forms and proportions. | | | | talk the same language. Bring people to a place of |
| Some are individual (affecting you personally) and | | | | unity so that they actually take ownership of their |
| some are of a national or global coverage such as | | | | situation. As long as you give yourself the burden of |
| the ongoing fight with the AIDS epidemic. The goal is | | | | getting everyone out of the crisis, you may easily |
| to find the quickest and most effective method of | | | | fight a losing battle as people may delay your exit |
| bringing the state of affairs back to normal. This | | | | strategy. Some may be benefitting from the crisis |
| alone explains the efforts from every sector of the | | | | hence they stifle your efforts. A brilliant idea maybe |
| world, be it donor community, research scientists, | | | | hidden in the most unlikely team member, much |
| governments and corporate to bring a lasting solution | | | | lower on the structures of power. |
| to this one type of crisis. Your crisis may not be as | | | | 6. Plan your exit from crisis - As discussed above, |
| prevalent as the epidemic but the fact remains that it | | | | sometimes the crisis situation maybe a matter of life |
| is state you would desire to move out of. I have | | | | and death with the going of every minute |
| faced crisis after crisis in my life but I have emerged | | | | threatening the life of people, in such a scenario |
| out of every crisis sharper, wiser and more | | | | there is no room for board meeting, or consensus. |
| experienced. Some of the crisis I faced taught me | | | | Movement is by instinct not according to an activity |
| endurance, persistence, optimism and courage. While | | | | planner. Careful planning of the precepts and phases |
| crisis situations have a lot of life lessons, one would | | | | of the exit from crisis is important. Document every |
| not desire to first see a crisis then learn but learn | | | | step, on each step you need to identify who is |
| anyhow from other people's crisis. How does one get | | | | responsible and give the person a clear mandate of |
| out of crisis? I answer the question from what I | | | | why their role is important. Get strategic thinkers to |
| have learned under crisis below. | | | | test your plan and identify loopholes. A plan is as |
| The Steps | | | | strong as its weakest point. Test before you plunge |
| 1. Acknowledge that you have reached crisis point - | | | | or else you waste more time and money. Some |
| It is not a sign of failure to acknowledge the state of | | | | solutions make increase the extent of the problem. |
| affairs as it is. After all there is no situation that | | | | 7. Get expert advice and help - If you do not have |
| cannot be turned around either deliberately or by | | | | the skills necessary in your team or country, look |
| way of miracles. Simply declare that this is crisis level. | | | | beyondyour area. Call for specific people with specific |
| Failure to acknowledge may derail the exit into normal | | | | competencies to come in. Calling in technocrats with |
| mode as everyone feels it is business as usual. Make | | | | the right experience in dealing with the issues will |
| every citizen or employee know the nature of the | | | | sometimes cost you less in terms of loss or damage |
| crisis and how it affects them. Alcoholics that refused | | | | than creating make-shift solutions which in actual fact |
| to say the statement "I am an alcoholic" fail to move | | | | have expiry dates. You may not have the liberty to |
| out of alcoholism. Non admittance is living in denial of | | | | experiment or try out amateur level solutions. |
| the facts even though they are as clear as noonday. | | | | Specialists are there to provide specialist services. |
| Your affirmation will then change at a later stage as | | | | Some of them have studied on the very subject to |
| your affirm the new you. Acknowledgment is for the | | | | the highest level of study possible. |
| purpose of finding the help you require. | | | | 8. Revisit your financial priorities - Your crisis may not |
| 2. Establish the nature and category of crisis - Who is | | | | be related to finance but every crisis has an impact |
| affected by the crisis? What is the general extent of | | | | on your finances. You have to prioritize your |
| the crisis? Is it affecting just the households next to | | | | expenditure in the direction of bring a normal |
| you or it has become an epidemic of high proportions. | | | | environment back. All payments in line with bringing |
| The extent and nature of the crisis determines the | | | | order and effectiveness are a priority. You may need |
| response strategy. Life threatening crisis requires | | | | to make sacrifices that affect a greater majority. |
| faster movement; move by instinct and save the life | | | | This is the reason why everyone must be engaged |
| under threat. By establishing the extent of the crisis | | | | to take ownership of the problem. As long as it |
| you are able to determine the level of reporting back | | | | remains the role of leaders to create a miracle out of |
| and human resource mobilization to help ease or end | | | | a solution, followers will always want their luxuries as |
| the crisis. Every crisis is unique, every problem is | | | | they may not share or buy-in to what leaders are |
| different. You will not prescribe the same medication | | | | doing even though it benefits them. |
| on a persistent migraine as you would on a minor | | | | 9. Execute your plan - Implementation - Most |
| headache. | | | | solutions look workable on paper. They sound good |
| 3. Identify the root causes of the crisis - To know | | | | and practical until the real implementation is due. You |
| the cause of a disease is certainly half the cure. It | | | | may have run a pilot of the solution, you may have |
| does not benefit you to fight flames in a fire as | | | | people's buy-in and all the necessary plans in writing |
| opposed to closing the container that is fueling the | | | | but if you do not carefully implement all you have |
| fire. Similarly in crisis setups, problems and conflict and | | | | purposed, the solution becomes a "nice to have". Get |
| anxiety may all be flames. You need to know why | | | | everyone to account for whatever role they were |
| the organization or country is where it is. Be frank | | | | given. Call for regular meetings to review progress, |
| with the reasons why. If you shy away from the | | | | budgets, human resource gaps etc. Without a follow |
| actual reasons it maybe a total waste of valuable | | | | through, the crisis will rage on. |
| time. Put all the cards on the table, undress the crisis | | | | 10. Communicate & Review Progress - You can |
| breaking it into the individual components that | | | | never be accused of over communication. If anything |
| originated and grew the crisis. You will realize that the | | | | sometime we put a lot of effort in creating solutions, |
| power of a fire is not high up on the flames but way | | | | we implement the solutions and forget to |
| low at the bottom where it is coming from. | | | | communicate the success stories and even areas |
| 4. Stop Creating Comfort in the Crisis - It is easy to | | | | where we are failing. Without adequate |
| acknowledge you are in a crisis and immediately find | | | | communication and review of progress, people will |
| coping mechanisms in the crisis. By so doing you | | | | easily be discouraged thinking that they are not |
| make everyone feel as if there is no crisis. It is the | | | | making any headway in redressing the crisis. Reviews |
| same as knowing that a person has a serious cut on | | | | and updates will keep everyone motivated and |
| the leg and is in excruciating pain then you give them | | | | inspired. In the whole process you need to document |
| the highest dosage of pain stopper. You may stop | | | | everything for others to use the same notes as |
| the pain momentarily but that does not disqualify the | | | | reference points in the future. |
| cut. Simply put; you have created temporary | | | | |