September 11, 2001 was a shocking day in our country’s history. The violation of our sovereignty and sense of safety will forever haunt our memories. I was at a National Sales meeting in Dallas, TX. The leadership response and lessons learned have served as a crisis management reservoir. It is incredible how comforting and timeless these lessons are as we relate to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The total story, my step by step recollection can be found in an earlier blog: https://wordpress.com/block-editor/post/myozonelayer.com/1314.

I will highlight the key lessons below.

– A structured well-conceived plan provides comfort

– Take care of your people – take the necessary steps to meet your people’s needs and help[ them feel safe

– Money is not an object and should not stand in the way of caring for your team

– Provide structure for your people until more information is available

– Note the location of everyone

– Provide frequent updates to share recent communications

– Delegate responsibilities to those most gifted to lead in their area of expertise

– Understand people’s emotions and relate with empathy

– Establish a timeframe to report progress

– Allow people time to release and relax

– Value people and show concern for their families

– Determine the key areas on which to focus your attention

–  Strong leadership created great stories and paid dividends in loyalty and increased performance

May you find them of value as we grow as a country, with leadership, compassion, love, unity, and safety as guiding principles.