Recently I was one of the many people affected by the volcanic ash cloud that descended over the UK and caused havoc for people flying throughout Europe.
“Wow”, some people said, “How lucky. You have another week in London.” I totally agree that having another week in London sounds great., however when you have planned to return and you have clients waiting for you, it isn’t so good.
We do a lot of work with organisations going through transformation, so we have learnt a lot about how people best manage themselves during change. For example, we understand the premise: ‘Manage what you can and don’t worry about the rest’
Aha! While the mind can rationalise, the heart, sometimes lets you down. I found it difficult managing when there was no reliable information, so that we didn’t know hour by hour whether we would be able to fly home.
The news media gave dramatic accounts of the volcano. It covered information about previous eruptions and how it could be weeks or even months before it would be safe to fly. Finally we got good reliable news that we could leave in two days and the relief was enormous.
In hindsight what have I learnt about managing myself during uncertainty?
Firstly it is hard to be logical during change, especially if there are no facts. It is essential that lines of reliable communication are available for all staff
The media like to make things as dramatic as possible; gossip moves in nanoseconds and both are often very wrong.
In future when I’m working with people who are in the middle of change and not in control of it, I will remember my own feelings of helplessness and stress. I will remember that I experienced them until the true facts emerge. It made me realise the importance of good communication.
