The first type of crisis management that we describe above is necessary. Things will happen that are beyond anyone's control, and because of this, you will find that you are looking at something that can really give you a chance to shine. However, there is also a darker side of this trait where a manager will only step in and handle things when a crisis situation has occurred. There are so many different reasons why this might happen, but you need to make sure that you are not someone who is letting a crisis go further than it needs to, before you solve it. A crisis is a sign that something has gone wrong, and if at all possible, you need to be able to head it off at the pass!
When you are thinking about crises and how you might manage them, take a moment to consider what your last few crises have looked like. For instance, when did you know that the crisis was going to be a problem? If you had no idea that it was coming at all, think about why that was. Was there poor communication going on between you and the other members of your department or your team or was it something that you simply could not have anticipated? If you saw it coming, what did you do to stop it? If the answer is nothing, you are looking at what is a very improper way of going about things; any crisis whose start can be seen can be managed in some way.
Think about crises as being rock falls; in many cases, all those rocks were already there and maybe some new rocks came to join them every few days. After a period of months or even years, there is one rock that is a rock too much and the entire structure slides down the hill. The rocks were always there, and maybe they were obvious and maybe they weren't, but it is important to remember that as a manager, you need to go looking for threats like this. If you are only aware of the rock slide after it has slid down the hill, there is a good chance that there is something wrong with the way that you are working.
Take a moment to consider how you can keep from turning into a crisis-based manager. This is something that can be hard to beat, so see what your options are and what you can do to get the results that you need.
