The COVID-19 pandemic forced us into a social and science experiment that had profound impacts on every facet of everyday life and that continues to this day. We were not warned. No one told us how to prepare. There was no playbook. We didn’t know when, or if, we would return to “normal.” What we are left with today is the memory of masks, social distancing, sanitizers and remote workforces.
We will look back years from now and recall the negative impact that COVID-19 had on mental health, social dynamics and business performance. But hopefully, we will also remember the flip side of those negatives and build on the positives, like the spirit of community, the elevated use of technology, a heightened awareness of work-life balance and the awakening of the entrepreneurial spirit to try things that you’ve never tried before.
It’s these positive results that I will remember and continue to focus on as I continue my leadership journey. I had just taken over as CEO of the North American Veterinary Community and ended our signature event — the Veterinary Meeting & Expo (VMX) — in January 2020 on a high. We attracted a record number of attendees, sponsors and exhibitors. My high was short-lived as I was confronted with a business shutdown on March 26, 2020. Shelter-in-place, social distancing and virtual everything became the nomenclature du jour. But there was still a business to run. Payrolls to make. How were we going to survive?
Well, I took a breath, made some assumptions, took stock of what we had and acted. We charted a course for the “new normal.” Fast-forward five years and I have to say I think we got most of it right. Our assumptions paid off and our decisions were pretty much spot on.
Looking back, there were five critical skills that I realized I developed to get us to where we are today. No doubt there were others who utilized the same skills, and probably more, but these worked successfully for me, and I’ll attest to these as being critical skills for any CEO when confronted with a crisis.
First and most importantly, remain calm. Don’t make any hasty decisions or knee-jerk reactions. Crisis situations appear out of the blue, but they normally play out over some period of time. Wait until most of the dust settles and the data becomes clearer before committing to a course of action. Now, period of time is relative. But in a situation like COVID-19, the dust didn’t settle for weeks, if not months, before we got a clearer picture of what we were dealing with and the changes in the landscape we had to navigate.
Second, project confidence. A leader needs to keep their chin up, shoulders back and act like they’ve been there before. Not only does it calm the staff, but it allows your brain to take some quiet time to plan without feeling rushed to decide. A leader can most definitely be doubtful, confused or undecided, but if that is projected to the staff, then there is a feeling of dread that permeates the rank and file, which could be a larger burden to personally and professionally overcome.
Third, overcommunicate. This is no time to keep your thoughts to yourself. Always keep everyone in the loop. Don’t rely on others to communicate YOUR message. The staff want to hear from you, and this is no time to have them decipher someone else’s communications. Communicate clearly, concisely and directly. I had to make the gut-wrenching decision to reduce our staff numbers, but we did everything we possibly could to communicate why we were taking this action and give the impacted employees the best chance to land on their feet.
Fourth, encourage radical thinking. A crisis like COVID-19 gave everyone a chance to reset. Use the crisis to create a new way of doing things. If you thought you were going to exit COVID-19 the same way you entered, you’re either so far behind now or you’re in another line of business. We ended 2019 with a virtual platform that would allow our community to engage with us year-round. We premiered it at our event in January 2020, and when COVID-19 hit a couple of months later, we were at the forefront of our industry and well-positioned to offer our products virtually without any major customization for 365-day engagement.
Lastly, constantly plan. Don’t settle for where you are with your business, your career or your life. Anyone can succeed when times are good. It’s how you act during the bad times that will determine what kind of a leader you really are. Constantly ask, “What’s next? What could we do better, or what shouldn’t we do at all?” Remember the things you learned from the COVID-19 crisis and implement them during the next major upheaval. Because there will be one and you want to be prepared.
“Don’t let a good crisis go to waste!” (Not my quote.)
Looking back five years ago, there’s no doubt COVID-19 left a lifelong mark on the world. We were all tested in many ways, and it exposed a lot of our vulnerabilities and our false sense of comfort with how things were going. Post-COVID life is different. Not better, not worse. Just different. But if we continue to utilize the lessons we learned during that period, we will not only be better prepared for the next time, but we will build a better existence in the meantime.