How Do The Best Leaders Respond To Negative Events?

How many times has this happened to you?

You get the call saying you lost the deal

You find out that your reputation is being shredded behind your back.

A key project with your name all over it has hit a wall.

You totally botched an important presentation

You are on the receiving end of some negative feedback

Tell me – when it happened, what was your immediate response?

(Most likely answer: “Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.”)

Trust me, you’re not alone – we’ve all been there.

As leaders, our response to the events around us is more important than the events themselves.

One of the biggest challenges we all face as leaders is dealing with negative events. A bad situation at work can quickly unravel us from a place of calm, confidence and spiritual connection, down to the dredges of an emotional meltdown.

Our natural subconscious inclination is to react to negative events with equal negativity. We’re just wired that way, like cave dwellers still living in the wild. A perceived threat usually evokes a colorful palette of emotional, knee-jerk reactions. Some of my personal favorites are revenge, depression, and raging insecurity.

Well folks, that is obviously not the most spiritually healthy response for well-groomed leaders like you and I. Plus, we’re in a business setting now, not a prehistoric jungle. Our instincts for fight or flight will generally not lead us to the greater good for ourselves, or for the organization.

Believe it or not, we actually do have a choice in how to respond. This, btw, is what separates us from the beasts. Making that choice requires awareness and intention to do the opposite of what our emotions are telling us to do. And therein lies the power we have for building the spiritual character of our leadership. Which, in turn, can shift the course of events to a much better outcome

“Hold on, there, Brad,” you’re saying. “Where can I get me some of this life-changing leadership mojo?”

I’m glad you asked. If any of you are in the Northeast (or wanting to visit the Northeast!), mark your calendars for Thursday evening, August 26th from 6:30 – 9:00 pm, where you can join me for an event hosted by A New Equilibrium, an organization committed to developing spiritually committed business leaders. It will consist of an excellent dinner at The Golden Pheasant Inn in beatiful Bucks County, PA on the Delaware River (smack in between Philadelphia and New York City. Well, kind of). Dinner will be followed by plenty of real discussion and practical tools addressing the challenge of dealing with difficult events at work.

You will learn how to transition from negative to positive, and how to return to that calm, confident and connected place where we do our best work as leaders.

For more information, click on this link: ANE August 2010 Event Rev 3, or click here to register.

And you can always just drop me a line at [email protected] to find out more.

Hope to see you there!

Photo by nAncY.