When The Going Gets Tough

When the going gets tough

…the tough get going. And if you sang that, “hello” my people! Billy Ocean will be in your head for the rest of the day!

What do you do when things are tough at work? Do you hide? Delegate? Or do you lean into the issue and work your way through it? How is that working out for you? You see, I work with leaders who have done that and got caught out somewhere along the way. They said or did the wrong thing or didn’t do enough to resolve an issue with their staff and they are in a dispute.

They feel threatened and this can lead to them becoming entrenched in justifying their behaviour so as not to lose face, often making things worse for them and their company.  But the red mist, fear or distress caused by defending your position gets in the way of logic, compassion and doing the right thing.

If you’re in a tug of war with your staff and you’re getting tired, drop the rope, walk away, and think about what outcome you really want to achieve. Better still, find out what your options are before you pick that rope back up again. You might just find out the best option is to make peace with the person at the other end of the rope, or end that relationship now.