Have you ever had a client facing a crisis and weren’t sure how to manage it?
Or maybe the team you were coaching blew up on an argument and you froze?
The key to successful crisis management is knowing how to communicate.
It’s not what is being communicated, but how it’s being communicated.
Hi and welcome to Evercoach, the leading online training platform for coaches who want to
create an impact in the world.
This is your host Ajit Nawalkha and today we’re talking about the 3 steps to manage
a crisis and how to communicate effectively to navigate through it.
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We coach ourselves and our clients to be focused on our objectives while keeping a steady mind
and emotional state.
But from time to time, this ideal state trips on a stepping stone and creates a crisis.
A crisis shows up as a stressful time in an individual's life when they experience a breakdown
or disruption in their day-to-day activities, usually elements that are out of their control.
Whether it’s a heated discussion, a panic attack, an anxiety attack, or failed plans,
you need to be ready to steer the conversation to a healthier place for your clients.
Clearly, all situations are different and each will require different communication
strategies.
Nevertheless, the process to manage the crisis is the same and applies to all situations
to help you dissolve the crisis as fast as possible.
The first step you should take when managing a crisis is to assess the situation.
Invest some time in accurately understanding what is happening, identify the crisis, and
who are the people involved.
A crisis degree can go anywhere from a mild discussion between different mindsets to a
more radical crisis of self-existence.
For example, the so-called “Mid-life crisis.”
Figure out what you know and what you don’t know, what are the holes in the story, what
are the implications, and how it affects the individual and those around him or her.
It’s important that you involve and engage all relevant stakeholders, especially if the
crisis transcends the person going through it.
Understanding the different perspectives will help you navigate the situation smoother and
faster.
Just remember to hold your role as an external, keep your communication objective yet empathetic.
Keep your listeners at ease when addressing them about the situation to avoid the crisis
from worsening or spreading.
Once you know all the facts about the issue, set a content update to all stakeholders involved
with the information you’ve gathered to set the record straight.
We already know that any normal situation can turn into a crisis easily when the wrong
information is passed.
Especially when it comes to group settings like organizations or families, gossip can
disrupt everything.
The second step is to find a solution to the crisis.
An important distinction we need to make in this step is the difference between responding
and reacting.
A reaction is an immediate response to a situation or event.
It usually happens without much thought and tends to be tense and aggressive, provoking
more reactions as a consequence and worsening the situation.
A response, on the other hand, is a thought-out, non-threatening reaction to a situation.
It’s calm and usually happens after taking the time to process the information first
before deciding how to react to it.
So when we talk about how to communicate during a crisis, it’s important you focus on the
responses instead of the reactions.
Coach your clients through their thought processes to avoid deepening the situation and start
looking for solutions.
Working with reactions will only end up in a big mess, lack of communication between
all parties involved, and no resolution.
Also, keep in mind that the best solutions are not necessarily the simplest or fastest
ones, so don’t try to solve it in just one swing because it most probably won’t work.
Crisis happens when there are deep shifts that require deeper transformations.
The bigger the issue, the more likely there will be more confrontation because of different
perspectives.
Disintegrate the crisis or situation into smaller issues, and coach your client through
addressing each smaller issue, one at a time, until you start building a stronger foundation
that can cope with the crisis.
Breaking it down will also make it easier for groups involving several stakeholders
to adjust to the needed changes at a slower pace and keeping the crisis under control.
What’s your best advice on effective communication when managing a crisis?
Share your go-to tips with us in the comment section below!
The third and most important step is to implement the solution and follow-up.
This step is all about your communication skills.
It’s ensuring the client can navigate the crisis without it exploding again on the way.
Communication skills you need include being open and accessible, make sure your client
feels safe approaching you if something is bothering them during the process.
Be honest about the facts of the situation, what needs to change, and what created this
problem in the first place.
Thorough and frequent communication will make sure everyone is aligned and aware and could
reduce the risk of the situation happening again in the future.
You also need to be considerate, compassionate and acknowledge other people’s fear around
this situation and how the consequences might affect their lives.
Try some coaching techniques like the “what if” card with your clients and ask them
what could improve in their lives after this crisis or maybe what could go wrong.
It’ll help you guide them through the journey better and implement the solution more successfully.
Now here’s an interesting fact.
So many people believe the best mechanism for managing a crisis is avoiding it.
And that’s where they go wrong.
Avoiding a stressful situation can feel like the easiest way out, but it will actually
backfire in the long run.
It will only deepen the issue itself and make it harder to resolve later.
Especially as the coach, your role is to ensure the people involved face the situation and
resolve their crisis instead of covering it up with a bandaid which is what they usually
do.
Coach them through the 3-step process we’ve discussed in this video.
Remember that when crisis arise, those who’ve taken the time to build the proper communications
and crisis management skills beforehand are far more successful than those who decide
to learn it “on the fly.”
My wish for you is that you work on your communication skills to be an even better coach and be ready
for any challenging situation you might have during your journey.
Managing crisis is all about how we communicate and handle the information with all the stakeholders
involved.
Now you know the theory, it’s time to turn it into action.
Learn how master coach Alexi Panos uses effective communication techniques in a live coaching
session.
Click here to watch this video next.
Would you recommend any other way to improve your communication when facing a crisis moment?
Share your best advice below in the comment section, so fellow coaches can learn about
your experience.
Also, drop a comment with your suggestions on what topic we should cover next.
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