David Michels

We’re now several months into the Covid-19 pandemic, and it makes sense to take a step back from the sprint of response to reflect. It’s the right moment to ask how the process has gone so far, and what leadership lessons learned are worth holding onto when the acute phase of the crisis begins to fade.

Taking this step is part of what we call a learning mindset. That’s the ability to be conscious of one’s own state of mind and the factors that influence behavior, combined with the discipline to adjust that behavior when new information surfaces. A valuable leadership trait in good times, the learning mindset becomes even more important in times of crisis. With an open mind and willingness to learn from experience, leaders can help their companies come out of the coronavirus crisis stronger.

In steady times and rocky ones, the hallmark behaviors of a learning mindset include:

Managing by trusting and enabling others. Research shows leaders who trust and empower their teams unleash significant potential. Compared with employees at low-trust companies, those working for high-trust companies report 74% less stress, 106% more energy at work, 50% higher productivity, 13% fewer sick days, 76% more engagement, 29% more satisfaction with their lives and 40% less burnout, according to Paul J. Zak’s “The Neuroscience of Trust.”

Active listening. Ask questions, not only about the business, but also about how people are doing. Connect and create inclusive experiences, so people feel they’re part of a bigger group, mission and valuable purpose.

Willingness to show vulnerability. The new world is less certain, and you as a leader won’t have all the answers. It’s more credible to acknowledge that you don’t have a crystal ball.

Acting on behalf of the greater good. Crises test our sense of purpose. Covid-19 has prompted many capable leaders to reassess their own purpose and that of their companies. What makes us distinctive for our customers, for our employees and for the society in which we operate? Many executives are taking a fresh and honest look at their company’s mission and purpose, and reflecting on its societal impact.

For leaders with a learning mindset, coronavirus experiences can offer lessons to take forward and apply in the economic and business environment that will emerge after the crisis.

For example, due to the travel and social-distancing restrictions of the virus, a large food and beverage concern recently had to move online what had originally been planned as a full-day in-person training session. To avoid screen fatigue, the company reconceived the event, splitting it into multiple two-hour segments over three days. Concerned that the online forum might make connection difficult, leaders focused on ways of ensuring employee participation. The amount of one-way dialogue was intentionally limited, and instead significant time was given over to small-group discussion and exercises.

The approach worked. Despite the need to do this training remotely, participants seemed to connect as well as, or even better than, they typically do in person. One participant seemed to voice a common sentiment when he reported in his event feedback that not only had he learned valuable tools to help him partner with other leaders and lead his own teams, but that he actually felt he had made new friends in the process.

This company is unlikely to move all training online. There are advantages to in-person meeting as well. But by enabling and trusting its trainers to experiment, the company learned a lot about the value of trust and connection and new ways to enhance it. Creating an inclusive experience helped the attendees of this online training feel part of a bigger group, connected to their mission and purpose. In debriefing and reflecting on the event and attendee feedback, managers resolved to invest more in engaging their teams even after the work-from-home mandate subsides.

For cultivators of the learning mindset, this kind of experience offers lessons not only in what to do today to combat the immediate effects of Covid-19, but what to do afterwards as well. What leadership lessons have you learned from your Covid-19 experience that you’ll take beyond the crisis?

Forbes