admincommit to something you should never have agreed to.
I love this story from emergingideas.com: “My first day at summer camp my mum dropped me off at the front of the building.
“All of the camp leaders were cheering for the campers as we started our first day. I felt special.
“They would run up to the car, smiling, cheering, and screaming. They helped us campers out of the car and then ushered us into the exciting world of camp.
“It was terrifying. As I walk through the front doors, I heard a loud booming voice say: Attention everyone, a new cancer was discovered this week! The way you can tell if you have it is by checking the palm of your hand for red bumps.
“It was a trap and I knew it. So I kept walking. I got to a flight of stairs leading up to the open hall, but couldn’t help but wonder if I had this new hand cancer.
“I took a very subtle glance at the palm of my hand. Smack! An older camper smashed my palm squarely into my nose.
“And then there was blood. Welcome to summer camp. For the rest of that week, I was constantly reacting.
“I was afraid that I would be slapped by my own hand again. I was fearful. I hung back by the wall.
“I didn’t know who I could trust. I hated summer camp from then on. When he hit my hand into my face, I thought that I should have punched that kid in the face.
“I should have spit blood on him.
“Instead, I was left crying and ashamed. It’s a sad story, but it’s funny too. And it taught me about ‘reactions’.”
The reactions to the false cancer story, is akin to reactions that people take based on news channels, or neighbours.
We often react out of fear. The fear that causes us to veer away from common sense and embrace the nonsense around us.
In the moment of panic, afraid of looking bad your mouth utters things best left unsaid.
Have you ever met a fast talking scammer? There are several hustlers who are roaming our streets who come up to people with the story about their cousin/mother/brother who needs medical attention but are trapped at Kariba and they have come in from Bindura and have run out of money to get up to Zaka, or wait, was it Kariba?
But you are not really listening to the details because they talk so fast, and well it seems like a worthy cause, and you just really want them to go away.
You react by dipping into your pocket or wallet and give them money just to get rid of them. They prey on the fact that you will make an irrational snap decision.
Crisis management is not management, it is a series of reactions one after the other. Many of the reactions actually escalate the problem instead of solving it.
Here are a few ways you can sidestep reacting. Don’t play to the game of exaggerated pressure (bumps on your hand, an unrealistic deadline, an ungodly request).
Customers, bosses, clients will often ask for unreasonable time frames. We need this video scripted, filmed, edited and packaged in two days, and it has to be the best you have every created.
No, don’t look at the bumps on your hand. Be clear about your beliefs and know the realistic deliverables in advance. Then make them clear.
Believe in your common sense. Why would anyone announce a new cancer at a kid’s camp?
Look at who is saying what. If you have just met someone, and they don’t have a crown on their head, why give them credibility so quickly?
Trust is key, so let it be earned and not lorded. Believe the people you trust. Volume of information does not make credible information it is easy for a false story to spread in the internet and through social media.
No one is cutting out your kidney and leaving you in a bath of ice (someone with that low level of morals is just going to kill you).
Learn to bite your tongue. Hold back a couple of seconds before blurting out an answer.
Let your brain catch up with your lips. It is far easier to swallow your words before they are out your mouth.
That extra moment of thought will save you from reacting and allow for a more rational decision.
We have all been hit in the face, stabbed in the back, and been forced to react. There are times we ignore common sense, give someone the authority when they don’t have it, and give in to tremendous amounts of unrealistic pressure.
Stop stepping back. Begin to train yourself that when danger approaches, step forward.
Face it head on and think it through beforehand. Then be bold with your common sense and send that curveball out of the park.
Email: [email protected]
Online Reporter