Being a great leader in difficult economic times is certainly no small task. Whether it is the rising cost of fuel, the uncertainty of natural disasters or the turbulent stock market – it’s likely your industry will feel an impact regardless of the field you may be in. Lately, we have all been inundated with countless webinars, seminars and articles on how to survive in these tough times. However, the basics of truly great leadership and management should be the same whether the economy is going well or is struggling. Yes, certain actions may need more immediate attention and focus as they become visible. Conversely, if you stick to the basics and continue to do the right things, you can flourish during tough times as well as good times.

This is precisely why in my book, More Than a Minute, I outline critical aspects for setting the stage to go exactly where you want to go regardless of what’s going on. Tough economic conditions may mean that you’ll need to reevaluate some of your destination points (where you are going) in light of changing conditions, but it does not mean you should abandon your focus on achieving those clearly defined goals and objectives.

Now is not the time for hysteria because during tough times, focus is critical for the success of both the individual leader and their organization. I often see clients begin to panic when they do not achieve anticipated revenue or margin goals. They begin fixating on missed opportunities, scattering attention and thus diluting their efforts to make any substantial progress.

As difficult as it is, leaders must stay focused. Adhering to tactical procedures will allow the overall strategy to be realized. Leaders and mangers must stay the course and align all their actions to make progress on it. This does not mean you ignore re-evaluating the conditions around you. Generally in business and more specifically during turbulent times, many situations will arise that you could not have imagined and issues pop up that you don’t see coming. Life comes at us fast these days and often things are happening in this world of ‘hyper-everything’ that alter the landscapes beyond our wildest imaginations. Everything from technology to real estate is subject to these innovations. If you had taken a global survey 6 months ago, it’s likely the vast majority would never have suspected Lehman Brothers would declare bankruptcy or that AIG would get an $85 billion dollar bail out from the federal government.

I suggest that you take a little time to pause and incorporate these changes into your own strategies, refine your destination points and reevaluate your operations plan. I know that it may feel like you are slowing down when you desperately want to run- but taking the time to do it right will get you there faster and will get you to where you want to go efficiently. Remember the mantra – there is never time to do it right, but always time to do it over is not the one winners use!

As stretched as your schedule becomes, it’s an important time to make sure you communicate these changes and the ‘why’ of any new goals and objectives. Slow down to do this or you will be astounded by how the energies become diffused and your employees work on what they believe is most critical whether it aligns to the organization’s new objectives or not. Communication is key!

Keeping employees focused during tough times provides a lot more comfort than leaving everyone wondering: “Is leadership clued in to what is going on? Is the company responding quickly enough or will we be the next one to fall apart? Is my project still important? Am I still important?” The connections between the organization and employees can actually strengthen as you weather the tough times together as long as you are clear on what is happening, what is changing, what is staying the same and why.

Feedback, both positive and constructive, is even more critical now as well. Employees need to know if they are doing the right things in the right way. Any voids that present themselves during turmoil, leaves employees the space to fill in the blanks with negative thoughts of their own- so leaders and mangers must provide as much feedback as they can. Otherwise, people will be forced to make up stories of demise and thus create self fulfilling failure. It is also vital to have your best workers engaged so that their energies are not spent looking elsewhere for future employment because they are unclear or uncertain how the organization is responding.

This focus on the basics is a strong one for me because I have seen this approach work for my clients time and time again. You can thrive during both the good times and the difficult ones! And it’s never too late to get started!

During my presentations, I often speak about the ‘bubbles’ we create in our heads (Imagine, if you will, those thought bubbles floating over a comic character’s head). Like many of you, I am enthralled by what goes on in those very fascinating brains of ours. I use this ‘bubble’ language to further expand upon a component of an amazing tool – the Ladder of Inference – originally developed by Chris Argyris and popularized in the Fifth Discipline Fieldbook by Peter Senge, et al.

The ladder of inference basically describes the path we take to get to our behaviors and illustrates how driven we are by mostly unexamined beliefs. Simply stated, we collect a small percentage of the data available to us at any given moment (likely about 10%). We process that data by adding our own meanings (unique to us) and making assumptions based on whatever meaning we’ve added. We then draw our own conclusion and take action. The problem is we hone in on the data that we select and constantly work to prove ourselves right by only selecting additional data that validates our original actions. So even if there is a plethora of available data – the up to 90% we don’t process – we ignore it or screen it out to validate our original assessment.

For instance, in this Presidential election year, think about the ‘bubble’s people have about the political party they are a part of. Or perhaps more interesting, think about the ‘bubble’s’ we form about the opposing political party and everyone who is crazy enough to be a part of it! Very few people can give you data about a particular belief or some specific issue, but they believe it strongly anyway. If you listen closely to the speeches and try to tease out data, you will be hard pressed to find any. Instead you will hear a lot of bubbles and an almost circular logic proving that the bubbles he/she has is true.

Once we start exploring and delving into the various bubbles and their meaning – we can better understand some of the many challenges we are faced with today (i.e. road rage, drivers running red lights, people not demonstrating common courtesies as often, hasty decisions at work about another team or person, etc.).

My suggestion to you is to take some time over the next week to really concentrate on what’s in your own thought bubbles. Make note of what you’re not saying out loud, what you’re focusing on, or even daydreaming about because the unique ways our brains process this data and come to conclusions does not always serve us well. It does, however, set us apart from the animal kingdom and has many advantages. Your thought bubbles (the beliefs you have about yourself, others and the world) are guiding your behaviors and by realizing them, we can begin to make the necessary changes in our lives, in our careers, and with others.

It’s important to remember that these thought bubbles are not always in our own heads- some are on a global scale, some national and some company-wide. They can sneak in unexpectedly and have been with us since a very early age.

• Last time you met someone and instantly did not like them…You can thank your bubbles.
• And what about that time you were certain you were about to be fired, but weren’t? Blame it on your bubbles.
• Have you ever been absolutely, positively sure a job candidate was perfect and then found out after a month of miserable performance that you were wrong? All about the bubbles.
• Remember high school…particular groups never hung out with each other… bubbles gone wild!
• Ever gotten frustrated with a driver who pulled in front of you because they were just a jerk? You get it… your bubbles!

Personally, I love watching for bubbles. Once you are aware of them, you will be blown away how often you find yourself with a bubble (almost always) and how often others speak only in their own belief bubbles without any supporting data but absolutely, positively sure they are right. After all, our bubbles are based on our data (about 10%) which is of course the truth – I mean you saw that, right? I am not making this stuff up…

What are some great bubbles you have seen lately? If you have a hard time coming up with some, just read a headline or watch a few minutes of a newscast. You’ll see plenty at work!

I look forward to helping you become more successful and will explore some ways to help you do that in my next blog. Until then, beware of the bubble!