Do You Create Crisis So You Can Be A Crisis Manager?
Mike Ferguson, Fresh Ground Consulting
Some managers are great in a crisis. They’re so good in a crisis that they create them. They procrastinate in order to experience a time crunch or a chaotic environment. They over-look details during planning so they will have to think fast on their feet to solve the resulting problems during execution. They enjoy the rescue because it’s fun, they get to be creative, they don’t have to follow an established process, and they feel like they work better under pressure and with the rush of adrenaline.
In a crisis, the expectations change to “just fix it, don’t let it get worse.” In team sports, the clutch player, the one who sinks a thirty-footer at the buzzer for a win, gets more immediate praise than the player who just methodically scores point after point all through the game.
This type of manager is often a perfectionist with a great imagination. When things are running smoothly, he thinks there is no excuse for not performing to perfection, and he imagines vividly what anything less than perfect will look like. Of course, his prophecy is fulfilled, but once in the throes of crisis he is no longer distracted by all that can go wrong. Something has already gone wrong and he actually relaxes into focusing on the rescue because he has no other options.
Managing from crisis to crisis can become addicting and is a difficult habit to break. To move away from this cycle, managers usually need objective and regular feedback as they become self-aware of the patterns. While the process is different for everyone, the key is redirecting the energy that is wasted on imagining what less than perfect looks like into developing systems and routines for every day, redirecting imagining energy with positive activity.
The question that managers who are addicted to chaos or crisis ask themselves, consciously or not , is, “If I’m not fixing something or rescuing something then what do I do?” The answer is simple. As a manager, their job is to manage to get things done without entering crisis.
Creating systems and routines for managing our daily workload, if we commit to them, can create a healthy and productive sense of urgency and immediacy and regular positive feedback. Real crisis, even self-inflicted, is inevitable and everyone gets a “crisis fix” from time to time. Getting organized also even outs your workload and decreases the tendency to work in spurts, but it is not easy. Exercise accomplishes the same thing for your body and evens out the adrenaline flow.
There is always the chance that the constant chaos in your workplace is beyond your control, but in my experience it is unlikely. Even if the culture in your organization is one of ongoing crisis, by stepping out of the tornado and methodically putting points on the board by first organizing your own workspace and work flow, you will make a greater contribution to those who choose to keep flying about in the wind.