5 Tricks the Most Resilient Leaders Use to Deal With Tough Situations

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If someone just read you the riot act or had your ass handed to you, welcome to being human. Conflict and drama happen and sometimes it takes a chunk out of you.

After licking your wounds, recovering emotionally from a challenging work episode doesn't happen with a flip of the switch. But, as a leader, you must move on at some point to keep your sanity.

Here are five game-changing ways resilient leaders manage their emotions after a crisis and bounce back to true form.

1. Assess your situation.

Resilient leaders use their emotional intelligence to do an honest self-appraisal of the situation(s) that may still be making them feel threatened. They process their thoughts carefully and drill down until they get to the root of the matter. Questions to ask: What is it about your situation that makes you feel the way you do? What needs closure? Get perspective and process your feelings if unresolved emotions still linger before something irrational happens. If you don't, you'll feel perpetually frustrated and angry.

2. Reframe.

While healthy egos may take a hit in a crisis, resilient minds recover quickly by reframing. Think of it as a technique to "tell yourself a different story" and come up with a different interpretation. Reframing helps to snuff out the perpetual drama that you may be scripting in your head. To reframe effectively, deal in the factual (what's really true for you) and in the here and now. Leave the ghosts of your past in the past.

3. Set clear boundaries.

Perhaps what hit you so hard was your lack of setting limits on others. Maybe you were falsely accused of something that could've been avoided. The most resilient leaders I know and have coached recover from bad situations by saying "no" to anyone who interferes with their goals, schedules, and especially their values and beliefs. So, remind yourself you don't have to be a "yes" person for anyone; it takes too much effort and leaves you frustrated. Instead, offer resistance when your beliefs and values are threatened. Push back firmly but not harshly, and draw clear lines in the sand.

4. Let go of the guilt.

Resilient leaders don't allow themselves to feel guilty about things that have nothing to do with them. Once they clear their side of the fence with honesty and integrity, they understand that they're not responsible for the actions and drama of others, and they never beat themselves up for something someone else did.

5. Reevaluate professional relationships.

Resilient leaders are smart enough to reconsider the risks and rewards of their networks so that it keeps them safe and serves them well. As a leader, your best bet to avoid future finger-pointing your way is to seek out a trusted inner circle of supportive and encouraging colleagues. At the same time, weed out controlling or needy takers who care only about themselves.

Your turn: How do you bounce back from conflict? Leave me a comment.

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On episode 103 of the Love in Action podcast, I sat down with Hubert Joly, former chairman and CEO of Best Buy, to discuss his most recent book, The Heart of Business: Leadership Principles for the Next Era of Capitalism. Joly chronicles his journey turning Best Buy around from the brink of extinction to being ranked 75 on the Fortune 500 list.

Highlights from our conversation:

• I ask Hubert what he believes business is about. “At the heart of business… is the pursuit of a noble purpose, putting people at the center, embracing all stakeholders, and treating profit as an outcome, not the goal,” Hubert responds.
• There are three imperatives to an organization and tackling them in the correct sequence leads to optimal outcomes: a people imperative – having the right teams properly motivated and equipped; a business imperative – having happy customers to whom you sell good products; a financial imperative – about profit.
• “The old model of leadership portrayed a leader as a superhero here to save the day, probably the smartest person in the room, and, unfortunately, too driven by power, fame, money or glory,” Hubert claims. “This [type of leadership] doesn’t work… [people] want to be part of the journey and the solution.”
• Hubert debunks the concept of perfectionism as a key to success; he shares how demonstrating his imperfection actually helped create the right environment for optimal performance at work.
• I ask Hubert about the formula for turning around a company in financial distress. Hubert breaks down his strategy for rescuing Best Buy.
• I ask Hubert how he thinks a leader loves well. “Work is love made visible," says Hubert, before expanding on the best features of caring leaders.

[Listen/subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Download]

Note: We're heard in 150 countries. If you'd like to sponsor an episode for your business, let's talk!

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I'll leave you with this...

Trust is absolutely CRITICAL for leadership success. But how do leaders actually build trust with their teams? My team has created an experiential online course -- ‘From Boss to Leader’ -- that will show you (and your team) how. Let's do this, together. More info here.

At your service,

Marcel

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About Marcel Schwantes

Marcel Schwantes is a virtual speaker, executive coach, author, leadership advisor, podcast host, and syndicated columnist with a global following. His work has been featured in Inc., Business Insider, Fast Company, The New York Daily News, CNBC, Forbes, and others. He speaks on the human side of work, and how cultures of care, connection, and belonging power companies to outperform the competition.