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Writers Matthew Seeger and Gregory Button, in the Detroit Free Press, recently wrote a good article analyzing how people cope with a crisis with examples of the Exxon Valdez, Three-Mile Island, the Challenger disaster, and 9/11. The elements that they identified were as follows:
1. Key warning signs are missed.
2. Communications break down.
3. There is "impaired honesty", where people are afraid to speak or are reluctant to speak.
4. People see what they expect to see and fail to identify the novel elements.
5. Institutional complacency and pride assure people that "all will be well".
6. There are distractions which lead people to focus attention on the wrong things.
7. In the aftermath, there is blame rather than learning and policy change.
Christian communities regularly come into times of crisis. The crisis may be caused by serious conflicts, financial decline, leadership shortages, tragedies or social change. No one feels ready to provide leadership in a time of crisis, but life has a way of bringing obstacles when we least expect them. The following are some important elements for helping a community through a time of crisis.
1. Provide a good flow of reliable information.
2. Be attentive to novel elements.
3. Maintain a high trust level with our co-workers so people are in a climate where they can speak easily.
4. Good morale is important to any organization but do not let it slip into self-satisfaction.
5. Look for the vital clues, facts and realities that can help you take decisive, corrective action early.
6. Know that communities, like individuals, need to accept some losses as the price of important learnings.
Item 60
©2004 Ronald C. Ferris
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