As a leader, you cannot control the degree of uncertainty and disruption you face. However, you can control how you think and act during uncertain times.
Great leaders never let uncertainty overwhelm them. Leading through uncertainty means staying strong-minded and acting decisively regardless of how hard it gets. Here are five proven strategies for leaders to deal with uncertainty:
1. Embrace Uncertainty
Stress is a normal physiological response to unfamiliar situations like uncertainty. Our brains are wired to view disruption, complexity, and uncertainty as a threat or a risk. High-achievers are trained to come up with the right answer throughout their careers which is why they tend to avoid uncertainty.
Avoiding uncertainty can hamper your learning, performance, and growth. The best way to survive uncertain times is to embrace the discomfort that comes with uncertainty. Having a “know it all” attitude during these times can be dangerous.
Leaders often feel that they have to act all-knowing in order to be able to influence others. However, this approach can put a lot of pressure on them and magnify the stress caused by uncertainty.
2. Ditch Perfectionism
Circumstances continually change during uncertain times. Perfectionism can be a disease that can prevent long-term progress. Leaders with a perfectionist attitude are intolerant to mistakes and may react unreasonably when something does not go as planned, engendering even more anxiety in the work environment.
Effective leaders survive uncertain times by aiming for progress and expecting mistakes along the way. Perfectionism stems from the fear of failure and the implicit assumption that you won’t be able to recover from a failure. By embracing your fears and debunking these assumptions, you can easily let go of perfectionism.
3. Don’t Oversimplify Things.
In an attempt to make things less intimidating, leaders turn to oversimplifications. For example, breaking down a challenge into more manageable units can make you feel less overwhelmed but it may make it difficult for you to understand some critical interdependencies.
High-achievers oversimplify challenges to find a clear course of action and become frustrated when there is no evident solution to the problem at hand. While effective leaders may also have a bias for action, they accept their biases and balance their need for action with a realistic plan of action. Go to https://betfirstcasino.be/en/ to enjoy your favorite casino games.
4. Don’t Go It Alone
The implicit belief that you need to solve all your problems yourself can leave you feeling isolated. Leaders tend to double down their focus and increase individual efforts when faced with complex situations or continuous change. While this can help you deal with short-term problems with clear solutions, it can be counterproductive when dealing with complex issues having interdependencies.
You need to understand that there is an inherent limit to what you can do or how much you can know. It’s important to create and connect with a network of peers to expand your knowledge and accomplish more.
5. Move From The ‘Balcony’ To The ‘Dancefloor’
To get a systemic view of the issues you are dealing with, you must zoom out or move from ‘the dance floor to the balcony’, as explained in The Practice of Adaptive Leadership by Alexander Grashow, Marty Linksy, and Ron Heifetz. The ‘balcony’ here refers to a vantage point from which you can get a broader view of the challenges and see all interdependencies. Getting immersed in the problem can prevent you from seeing larger patterns. Zooming out on challenges helps build your ability to keep a sense of perspective.