This is it, leaders-the chance you have been waiting
for! The perfect opportunity to be a guiding light in the darkness. The
time to step up and inspire your people, to take away their fear, to
offer them hope. Well? Where the hell are you?

If you are in a
leadership position, you need to ask yourself some questions: Have I
spoken to my people? Not sent out an e-mail-addressed them in
person-face-to-face. If you have not done so this year, you should be
ashamed. They need to hear from you-live and in person. They need YOU.
LEAD THEM!

Do they know what your plan is? I saw a great leader
address his people. He outlined the current economic situation for his
industry (construction). He told his employees what phase one of cuts
would be. He gave them his thoughts on what phase two might be. He
reassured them the company had a plan and the first priority was to try
to keep everyone employed. He was honest about what he didn\'t know and
he promised to keep them posted. He did a great job-and everyone in the
room felt like part of a team. Your people need to know your plan. (And
if you don\'t have a plan, you better get one.)

Too many people
are not hearing from their leaders and it is scaring them to death. One
friend of mine thought her leaders might be afraid that any
pronouncements would hurt the stock value, so they were being cautious.
That is just pathetic. So the plan is - what? Hide in your office while
your people operate in terror? What do you think that will do to the
true worth of your company?

Here\'s what you need to do and keeping doing:

Step
One - If you don\'t have a plan for the next six months, put one
together immediately. You may have to revise this frequently as we are
facing changes at a rapid pace. Writing a five year plan is no longer a
viable option, things are too volatile right now (and probably
hereafter). Revise whatever you have or develop new plans regularly.

Step
Two - Communicate, communicate, communicate. Stop kidding yourself that
that e-mail (or blog posting or update to the corporate website -
whatever!) you sent out when the trouble started was effective. Do you
know how many assumptions are involved in electronic communication? You
assume the intended recipients got it, that they accessed it, that they
understood it (meaning they took the time to get all the nuances
without seeing your facial expressions or hearing your tone of voice),
and that they still remember it! At a minimum, triple your regular
communication efforts - this is a time of fear. The more communication,
the better. Reassurance right now is a great thing.

Step Three -
Listen more than ever. Your front line people have great intel. Are you
really listening? Are you paying attention to why you might be losing
customers or what ideas they might have for gaining customers? Are you
really using your front line people effectively? One great example -
what the heck has happened to suggestive selling? Very few retailers,
restaurants, and other businesses I do business with ever suggest
options or upgrades. I think this is because front line people are not
trained to do this AND are not rewarded for doing this. Go ahead - keep
letting that money walk right out of your business. Send some e-mail -
that will save you.

Step Four - Reward and recognize the
performers. Be visible. Pat the fighters on the back. Think of yourself
as a general on the beach at Normandy. You have to keep your troops
fighting as all around them their friends are falling. If you\'ve had
layoffs, this is crucial. Even if you haven\'t, chances are good your
people know someone who lost his job, and they are afraid they are
going to be next. Restore their faith in your vision - give them hope.
Keep them storming the beach!

Stand up leaders! Rally your
people! Tell them you plan to fight and how you are going to do it.
Tell them what they need to do to be part of the solution. Some
companies will be left standing and they will be stronger than ever.
Tell them you plan to be one of them. Americans are strong, your people
are tough-but they have to know what to do. Are you going to leave them
unable to sleep at night-afraid and cowering - or are you going to make
them warriors? Step up leaders-the day is yours to seize.