Five ways you–yes you!–can be a leader at work right now
In times of great stress, we show the best and the worst of ourselves.
It is one of those times. We face uncertainty, from health risks to economic turmoil. People are having hours cut, being laid off, or simply unable to go to work because of shelter-in-place orders. Many are facing decisions about whether to put their health on the line to do their work, while others are managing new ways of working while in isolation. We're communally reeling from the world changing in a matter of days.
And we are demonstrating the best of ourselves, too. We see it in our communities with people checking in with their neighbors, doing grocery runs for at risk friends or family, or singing from balconies to one another. We see it in workplaces that are putting in place expanded paid leave programs, instituting work from home or flexible schedules, paying workers despite closure, increasing pay, or changing performance expectations to account for the new reality of work.
This moment is an opportunity to step up and grow ourselves. To face fear and provide stability and support to others. This is what leaders do.
“At Empower Work, we believe that everyone has the capacity to lead. You don’t need to be in a position of organizational power to show leadership. We all have the power to influence those around us.”
Leadership We’re Seeing at Empower Work
So many people are coming to Empower Work right now because they hear a call to lead. Because they feel that their company leaders are failing to meet the needs of clients, customers, and employees. Because they see a disconnect between their own values of doing the right thing, protecting others' safety, and providing for their emotional as well as physical needs.
These people are leaders. It is our privilege to help them navigate the choices of how to influence those with power.
And that's just what we do. Help people see what is at stake for them in their situation, articulate the clear and specific outcome they want to achieve, and talk through how to get there. It's what we did before the novel coronavirus, and it's more needed now than ever.
Five Ways You Can Step Up
Here are five important and inspiring actions I’m seeing people do, that each of us can do in our workplaces and communities right now:
Leaders take care of themselves. Put your own oxygen mask on before helping others. As a leader, taking care of your own emotional and physical needs first is essential–and part of that is differentiating between our needs and our fears.
One person* came to us wanting to find a way out of a manager’s daily coronavirus status calls. These daily calls triggered their anxiety without accomplishing anything productive. This person exhibited leadership in wanting to protect their oxygen so they could give more for others.
Leaders ask for help. We solve problems more effectively together than we do alone. It can be hard to ask for help, because it can feel like admitting that we can't do something on our own. Leaders face their fear of showing vulnerability in the interests of being more effective. In the course of that, they model positive behaviors.
Everyone who has come to Empower Work has demonstrated this: they’ve asked for help.
Leaders manage their own emotions with others. The most difficult emotion of all is fear. And it's really hard not to be afraid given all that is happening. We're afraid for ourselves, for our families and loved ones, and for our society.
When we look around, the people we most respect are overcoming their own fears and offering lightness, generosity, and emotional stability. They're offering their colleagues help and support, and understanding that none of us is the same person we were just a few weeks ago, and that many of us have greater demands. Our incredible volunteers show this leadership every day supporting people who reach out to us.
Last week, a grocery store clerk shared that she almost cried when the store opened at 6am and then the power went out. People couldn't check out and were angry and hostile. And yet she maintained her focus on helping people and doing the best she could to help calm the situation and wait out the outage. That's leadership behavior.
Leaders reach out, connect with, and support others. With many of us now at home, it's a lot harder to feel connected. Leaders check in on other people, make them feel safe, and cared for.
One thing it's easy to do is take a bit of time to run through the people you normally interact with. When was the last time you chatted with them? If it's been a while, you can be the one who reaches out.
Leaders stand up for others and for what is right. What's it like to be the only person on a team who has young kids at home? Or the person caring for an elderly parent? Or a coworker who may not be as secure as you? That person may be feeling overwhelmed and scared of speaking up for themselves and their needs.
Last week, someone came to us deeply concerned that their company was continuing with an in-person meeting involving medically at-risk members. With an Empower Work peer counselor, they talked through how to escalate their concerns with their manager in the way most likely to be successful. Our team was inspired by their leadership in taking a stand–despite their fear of repercussions–for the safety of their community members.
Leading in Hard Times
It's one thing to step up when things are easy. It's another when things are hard. We need leaders now, more than ever. And can each be one–stepping up and providing support for others and influencing those around us. Will you join us?
Three ways you can take action right now:
Tell us how coronavirus is impacting you and how you’re leading in this survey.
Share Empower Work with a community that needs support.
*we share examples only when de-identified or where given express permission.
Discuss work issues confidentially with a trained peer counselor.
Text HELLO to 510-674-1414.