Mastery Level Skills: Crisis Management

Every business must deal with crisis situations. For some businesses those situations are debilitating, but for others they are an opportunity to shine. Too often the inexperienced run into the crisis and flounder amidst all the problems and decisions. The Mastery Level Team attacks the crisis like a Fire Chief does a fire. 1. Stop - The first response is no response. Before attacking the fire, stop and stand back for a moment to observe what is happening. This is the most critical step and is often overlooked. Rushing into a blazing building will only get people killed. The Fire Chief must first see what they are dealing with, before moving.

2. Focus - Look at all the details of the crisis. Here the Fire Chief will look for entry and exit points. Hot spots and danger zones. Without this information lives may be lost. We do not deal with life and death situations but time and effort can be wasted, and wrong decisions at this stage can be costly.

3. Analyze - Assess the situation and determine the best manner of attack. The Fire Chief will analyze options, alternatives, and the best allocation of resources.

4. Perspective - See the crisis with new eyes. The information gathered from the steps above give the observer a new educated perspective. This leads to decisions about how to deal with the crisis.

5. Delegate - Leveraging your strengths. The Fire Chief does not run into the building. They issue orders to the team of skilled firemen to attack the fire in a systematic manner. You can leverage yourself through the actions of your team members. Many times the best person to do the job is not you. While the other person is working on one thing you can focus on another.

6. Act - Everyone now goes into action.

The first four steps only take a few moments to perform, though they are often overlooked. The value they add to your response is immeasurable. When the next crisis arises, stop first.