There will always be a leader in business, politics, community or any other organization. Without a leader, the whole organization will crumble as no one will lead the group into doing something they have collectively decided. Sometimes a leader doesn’t even have to consult the group but would have to consider very important factors so that the leader could properly decide what’s best for everyone. For this reason, most see leadership as a lucrative position as a leader can wield power and influence. Everyone follows your decisions and see it fit to be implemented for the good of the organization.
But during recession, being a leader is anything but lucrative. This is especially true in the business setting. Recession could easily destroy a business as profits will considerably fall. These are not caused by the company itself as most of the causes are based on external factors. During this time, a leader is pressured to perform so that the company would eventually survive. This is a lot easier said than done as the leader will have to deal with the challenging external factors. At the same time, the leader will have to deal with its followers who are emotionally and financially affected by recession.
Standing Tall for the Company
If you are one of the leaders, no one in your company should show hope in the company more than you. You have to believe that everything will be addressed accordingly without too much effects of recession. Employees will always be looking out for the reaction of its leaders. Although everyone is part of the company, it is the leaders that are often seen as a gauge on how the company fares.
Even without the recession, the leader will be noticed about everything – the actions, reactions and even the way the leader dresses will be noticed. During recession, everyone will be closely guarding your actions because it is through your actions the company will eventually survive.
This is a good and bad thing. On one hand, you will be able to rally everyone and focus on being productive as you stand strong in front of them. You inspire, encourage and help them focus on the job. Your daily interaction with employees could easily help everyone do their tasks and possibly more efficiency.
However, it could also happen that you become the cause of a greater problem. Because of recession, you will be pressured to make drastic decisions so that the company will survive. Unlike the employees, you don’t just have to be encouraged to work well but you will also have to consider external factors. You need to make decisions that will buffer the external factors that could cause the company to fold. It is a lot more frustrating for a company to go down after a rigorous effort of its employees.
Two Heads are Better than One
Being a leader doesn’t always mean that you are burdened with decisions alone. A leader is basically someone who can choose a decision presented by its employees or would be someone who can seek the right decisions through different actions. One of these actions to combat recessions through leadership is to get someone involved in decision making. There are hundreds of factors to consider that you alone can’t easily think of all of them. Your employees could even provide a viable solution to your company problems. The employees are always in the frontline of businesses so they know what really happens and what might be done so that the business will survive without having to sacrifice too many people.
Valuing individual perspective doesn’t only have a positive impact for the business but could also provide a positive psychological impact to your employees. The employees would feel more empowered since they have in making decisions for the company. Because of that empowerment, they are pushed to work better for the organization. They are also aware that it is through their collective actions not only will they reach a more educated decision; they can also vastly improve productivity through their collective efforts.
Leadership during recession is not just about handling the entire burden of the organization. Always include your employees in the decision making process during these times so that a better decision could be easily achieved.
