Handling Pressure & Responding Calmly

The art of responsiveness requires listening (to build a foundation so we can adapt our response to our team’s needs) and investing in each responsive relationship (to give or receive mentorship), but quick decisions under pressure can sacrifice the influence we’ve worked so hard to earn - if we’re unable to respond calmly.

As we looked at giving feedback with respect, I hit on the concept of emotional intelligence. Cindy and I have written numerous lessons on the topic with the goal of providing practical steps anyone can apply to immediately increase their own emotional intelligence in any situation. I won’t go into that detail here, you’re welcome to access our Leading At The Next Level program and ask the chat agent to provide you with a list of the lessons that address it. I think I can better serve you with a story Cindy shares in one of those lessons - because it’s one of the best I’ve ever heard for illustrating the importance of handling pressure and responding calmly.

When Cindy and I met, she worked in the radiology department at our local hospital. One of the radiologists was usually a wonderful person to work around; bringing donuts, buying the entire team lunch, and often giving gifts to various members of the team. (Some gifts were a bit extravagant, but that’s an entirely different story…) On occasion, though, stress mounted and stuff hit the fan! In sharing the example in our lesson, Cindy paints a picture of a long hallway, all white, with patients lining each side. The frazzled radiologist bursts out, screaming obscenities and throws a folder full of x-rays down the hall - through the patients and their families. While not a daily occurrence, it certainly wasn’t something that happened only once.

Her point in sharing the story is that the radiologist did not effectively practice self-management - the second component of emotional intelligence. What I want you to consider here are the supervisor or managers you’ve interacted with over the years who responded similarly when they were under stress - even if what they were throwing wasn’t large files of x-rays. Assuming they were the least bit responsive, how did that impact your willingness to approach them, especially if you recognized the pressure they were dealing with? I realize there are times where we have no choice but to interact with someone like this, but I also know we avoid them at all cost when there is a choice.

Throughout The Values Advantage, I shared examples of how I’ve watched my friend Craig lead his team - completely based on their five core values - since meeting him and his family during the summer of 2021. In addition to the significant growth in the first company they purchased, they’ve acquired three more since. I’ve seen few people juggle as many things as he has. I won’t begin to pretend that I’ve never seen him stressed; I most certainly have. But I’ve watched him consistently respond to that pressure calmly, modeling the compassion, humility, integrity, dependability, and family that make up the organization’s core values. In times where he’s felt his response missed the mark, I’ve personally seen him circle back with the individual to apologize and accept complete responsibility.

With each of those examples in mind, which would you prefer receiving a response from? Which would you seek mentorship from? And which do you believe would be more genuine in investing in responsive relationships? Now, which one would your team members compare you with? Calmness under pressure enhances responsive leadership! Before we look at how we can work to sustain responsive habits, I’ll challenge you to practice responding calmly in a high-pressure situation; if any counts on you for leadership, I’m sure you’ll experience one of those situations soon enough.