WEBVTT

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We think of a great leader

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as the unwavering captain
who guides us forward

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through challenge and complexity.

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Confident, unwavering leaders,

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armed with data and past experience

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have long been celebrated
in business and politics alike.

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But sometimes and certainly now,

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a crisis comes along
that is so new and so urgent

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that it upends everything
we thought we knew.

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(Music)

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[The Way We Work]

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One thing we know for sure

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is that more upheavals are coming.

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In a completely interconnected world

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a single political uprising,

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a viral video, a distant tsunami,

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or a tiny virus can send
shock waves around the world.

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Upheaval creates fear,

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and in the midst of it
people crave security

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which can incline leaders

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toward the usual tropes of strength,
confidence, constancy,

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but it won't work.

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We have to flip the leadership playbook.

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First, this type of leadership requires

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communicating with transparency,
communicating often.

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So how can leaders lead
when there is so little certainty,

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so little clarity?

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Whether you are a CEO,
a prime minister, a middle manager,

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or even a head of school,

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upheaval means you have
to ramp up the humility.

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When what you know is limited,

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pretending that you have
the answers isn't helpful.

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Amidst upheaval, leaders
must share what they know

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and admit what they don't know.

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Paradoxically, that honesty creates
more psychological safety for people,

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not less.

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For example when the pandemic
devastated the airline industry

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virtually overnight,

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CEO of Delta Airlines Ed Bastian

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ramped up employee communication

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despite having so little clarity

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about the path ahead,
facing truly dire results.

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At one point in 2020,

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losing over a hundred
million dollars a day,

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it would have been far easier for Bastian

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to wait for more information
before taking action,

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but effective leaders during upheaval

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don't hide in the shadows.

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In fact as Bastian put it,

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it is far more important to communicate

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when you don't have the answers
than when you do.

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Second, act with urgency
despite incomplete information.

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Admitting you don't have the answers

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does not mean avoiding action.

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While it's natural to want
more information,

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fast action is often the only way
to get more information.

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Worse, inaction leaves people
feeling lost and unstable.

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When New Zealand
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern

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laid out a four level
alert system very early

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in the COVID-19 crisis,

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she lacked information
with which to set the level.

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Despite lacking answers,
she did not wait to communicate

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about the threat with the nation.

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At first she set the level at two,

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only to change it to four
two days later as cases rose.

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That triggered a national lockdown

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which no doubt saved countless lives.

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Later, when cases began to dissipate,

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she made subsequent decisions

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reflecting that new information.

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Third, leaders must hold
purpose and values steady,

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even as goals and situations change.

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Values can be your guiding light

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when everything else is up in the air.

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If you care about customer experience,

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don't let go of that in times of upheaval.

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If a core value is health and safety,

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put that at the center
of every decision you make.

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Now doing this requires
being very transparent

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about what your values are,

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and in this way, your steadfastness shows

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not in your plans, but in your values.

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Prime Minister Ardern's
clear purpose all along

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was protecting human life.

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Even as the immediate goal
shifted from preventing illness

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to preparing health systems

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and ultimately to bolstering the economy.

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And finally, give power away.

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Our instincts are to hold
even more tightly

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to control in times of upheaval,
but it backfires.

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One of the most effective
ways to show leadership,

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if counterintuitive,

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is to share power with those around you.

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Doing this requires asking for help,

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being clear that you can't do it alone.

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This also provokes innovation

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while giving people a sense of meaning.

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Nothing is worse in a crisis

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than feeling like there's
nothing you can do to help.

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We follow this new kind
of leader through upheaval,

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because we have confidence

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not in their map, but in their compass.

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We believe they've chosen
the right direction

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given the current information,

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and that they will keep updating.

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Most of all, we trust them

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and we want to help them
in finding and refinding

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the path forward.