A great article from Harvard Business Review about a roof collapse at B&O Railroad Museum. It reminds us that a disaster plan doesn’t show you how to manage employee’s emotions. In a crisis, employees want to know you are a human being and that they can continue to trust you. A crisis leader must be a storyteller.

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Crisis HR is the art of leading staff through a crisis well internally. The cost of getting it wrong is often invisible but no less dangerous. A crisis is an opportunity for a leadership team to live their vision and values statements and hence increase employee engagement and discretionary effort.

Jill Bolte Taylor tells an astonishing story of her experience of a stroke.  As a brain scientist she uses her understanding of the two hemispheres, to explain what was happening to her.   In this 20 minute talk, she brings a tear to you eye and also tells you how cool it was for her

For me this book, made me really think about the reasons why I say “busy” when someone asks me how I am. It is a sobering read inviting you to consider how our habits get in the way of the work we really want to be doing. With lots of practical advice, I am currently trying to rewire my habits (it hurts!)

So often, we compel our people to behave in a specific way, by talking about ‘what’ and ‘how’. In this compelling video, Simon Sinek describes why needs to change, using Apple & Martin Luther King as examples. He challenges the commonly held belief that companies exist to make a profit, and invites you to talk about your purpose, your cause, your why to inspire action. “People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it”

This is collection of thinking about how coaching can support individuals in crisis. A few themes stand out as chiming with my experience, and are particularly helpful to the work of Crisis HR.

A deep, emotional and thought provoking insight from Brene, on Shame. Our biggest critic is ourself, and the scripts we run about not being good enough hold us back. The shame gremlin (as she calls it) prevents us from daring greatly and truly connecting with each other. She proudly states that vulnerability is the birthplace of innovation, creativity and change.

Most Leadership development focuses on how you think differently, this book explores how you “be” different to improve your leadership. Whilst the idea of leading this development with your body seems plain weird to the uninitiated (and certainly made me feel uncomfortable at the start), it has had a wholly positive impact on my leadership. I have worked with Eunice personally so I may be biased, but within the book she brings to life how somatics works.