
Ready, set, go! A roadmap for sustainable business transformation
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by Merete Wedell-Wedellsborg Published 23 December 2021 in Brain circuits • 4 min read
The ongoing pandemic and its uncertainties bring on a range of emotions. As a leader, you need to set the example and understand what is happening on your team.
Impulse control is about self-insight and subsequent self-regulation. You need to be able to answer the question ‘How do you avoid getting caught up in emotional rollercoasters?’ – and to do so without thinking about it twice.
It’s all about monitoring and regulating yourself from being too “hot” or “too cold” and avoiding getting distracted by self-absorption.
As Shai Weiss, the CEO of Virgin Atlantic, kept repeating to his team as the heavy clouds of the pandemic came into view for the airline: “It’s not about money. It’s not about ego. It’s about survival.”
Let’s imagine you are being “too cold” in your emotional responses as a leader right now, which would amount to not creating enough psychological safety in the current climate, perhaps just because you are too laidback or somewhat emotionally numbed from long stretches of working from home.
There is a natural tendency to become more lax about restrictions and policies, simply because people are worn down and want things to be normal.
Jot down some ideas on how you might rectify this and compare with mine:
Now let’s imagine you are doing the opposite – being “too hot” in your emotional responses. The key indicator is that you start binging on initiatives and become overexcited about back-to-back meetings and new projects in the beginning and then you become disappointed and overwhelmed when they don’t live up to your expectations.
How might you keep this risk of “overshoot and collapse” at bay? Write down your initial thoughts and then compare with mine:
“It’s not about money. It’s not about ego. It’s about survival”Shai Weiss, CEO, Virgin Atlantic
Finally, keep your temperature regulated by asking yourself these four questions, in this order:
The Psychology Behind Unethical Behavior by Merete Wedell-Wedellsborg
Adjunct Professor at IMD
Dr. Merete Wedell-Wedellsborg is a clinical psychologist who specializes in organizational psychology. As an executive advisor, she has more than two decades of experience developing executive teams and leaders, and she runs her own business psychology practice with industry-leading clients in Europe and the US in the financial, pharmaceutical, consumer products and defense sectors, as well as family offices. Merete is the author of the book Battle Mind: How to Navigate in Chaos and Perform Under Pressure.
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