Crisis Will Visit You in 2025. Is Your Foundation Strong?

Get left of the boom in 2025! Here are four ways to do that.

“Prepare for it. Lead through it. Learn from it. Boom!” Colonel Rob Campbell

It is not a matter of if, it is a matter of when crisis will visit you in the new year. I hate to present this bad news on the cusp of 2025, but it is true, and I want you to be prepared. The clock is ticking so I’ll get right too it. In leadership, definitions are essential. I have always believed this and I seek to define words and phrases to understand their true meaning. I came from a profession where, if you misunderstood the definition, lives could be lost. I’ll offer two crisis definitions for your practice of leadership. Oxford Languages defines crisis as — a time of intense difficulty, trouble, or danger. Merriam-Webster defines crisis as — an unstable or crucial time or state of affairs in which a decisive change is impending. I go into detail on why these definitions are important and why leaders ought to spend time analyzing them in my book, “Left and Right of the Boom. The Art of Leadership, Before, During, and After Crisis.” Decisive change being the operative word, your crisis may or may not require change. It will, however, require the best of your leadership.

When crisis visits in the new year, gain some definition clarity as a first step. Ask yourself (and your people), “are we in crisis?” Then answer that question for yourself and your team. As you read this, you may be in the middle of a crisis. If you are, then get my book today! If you are not, invest some time in crisis-ready foundation setting. Only the strongest organizations (and sometimes the luckiest) survive crises, and this strength is derived from a solid foundation. Here are four ingredients for your crisis-ready foundation.

1. A noble and inspiring cause, captured in a guiding and enduring vision statement. Why does your organization exist? I own and operate a window coverings small business. We sell and install shutters, blinds, and shades. This is our ‘what’, but it is not what inspires people to work for us or buy from us. We exist to serve our community, our people, and our customers. We care for each other, empathize with our customers and give back to our community. It is that spirit of serving which strengthens my company. It is our ‘why’. The best illustration of this ingredient is the ground-breaking TED Talk by Simon Sinek, “How Great Leaders Inspire Action.” I return to this TED Talk often. Get cause and vision right and talk about them every day and you’ll ready your team for tough times.