In our work-from-home isolation, my husband and I have been making up words: 

Para-annoyed - Paranoid, meaning suspicious to a disabling degree (in this case, of doorknobs, touchpads, countertops, the box from The Outside that holds something you need, your own hands, other people, air);  + Annoyed, meaning irritated, vexed, a little angry (in this case, at having to stay indoors, cancel fun with other people, and cook for yourself all the time). 

Yell-icopter - A police helicopter with a loudspeaker, currently circling over San Diego beaches and parks telling people below that “Beaches and parks are closed. Thank you for observing the public safety order.”

And how are you managing, with the scary, exhausting and tragic upheaval of the world? 

Personally, I am very lucky. Not only do I get to make up new words with my husband (when we aren’t busy being annoyed-annoyed at each other over nothing), I get to keep working. 

Better still, my work includes helping leaders in health care and public health. It is a special gift to work with your heroes. They have always been my heroes, and now I get a close view (from my home office) of the impossible new heights of heroism they are reaching. 

For these leaders and their teams, focus is fleeting. For a good part of each day, people’s attention is like one of those small solid-rubber balls I loved as a child. Hurled sharply at the floor, the ball bounced quickly and wildly at first, smacking the ceiling and all the walls and corners. (It knocks something over. A parent yells “Outside!”) Then it bounced less high as it loses energy, but still all over the floor until it finally stops to rest again. 

To help with focus, certainty, and strength, we are using the team itself. We are working on communication, clarity, and mutual support to reinforce the team. We are reconnecting, over and over, to the team’s purpose. Everything else is up in the air, but the team is here. And the team knows what it’s here to do.

Here are a few practical ideas for strong supportive teams in a crisis. 

I split them into Head Work (technical and tactical) and Heart Work (human and emotional). Consider trying these in team meetings, and in one-on-one conversations. Let’s start with Heart.

Heart Work - the human and emotional stuff

• Acknowledge our need for physical strength and safety. If there was ever a time to mention the fact that the brain, voice, and hands we use to do our work are part of a physical body, this is it. Try a physical reset, by yourself and with team members. A pause for three deep breaths is simple. (The app Breathwork gives you different counts for different types of energy.) Or acknowledge physical health and physical needs by asking people for their tips on staying healthy.

• Acknowledge emotions. A good meeting usually includes a check-in: What’s on people’s minds as they come to the table (physical or virtual). This establishes trust, helps us communicate effectively, and humanizes us to each other. During a crisis, make room for emotions as well as other updates. Prompts to consider: “On a scale of 1 - 10, how equipped do you feel to tackle work today?” or “What’s one emotion you are feeling today?” Acknowledgement of negative feelings can help people let them go. Still, make it optional. If possible, negotiate deadlines based on people’s status. (If you think it will get deep, or too personal, check in 1:1 and not in the group.)

• Recommit to your shared purpose. One thing that has not changed is the basic point of your team’s existence. Use that purpose as your anchor. It is sobering and grounding. Say it out loud. Put it in the email. Yes, everybody knows this very well. It still helps to hear it as an anchor and a reference point to build on.

• Use humor. People are eager for a shared laugh, which is why I decided to open this with two silly new words. Humor is a survival skill. (It’s the one good thing about the whole toilet paper phenomenon. So many memes and LOLs.)

Head Work - the tactical and analytical stuff

• Bring to light people’s personal and logistical challenges. What’s going on at home? Provide the example by being the first to put it on the table. Everybody should know who has kids at home to manage, who is taking care of older parents, who is doing volunteer work. Nobody should feel guilty about what they need to do to help themselves, their families and their communities to get through the pandemic.  

• Ask people what little things they need right now. There are so many big things we can’t guarantee, for ourselves and for our teams, including perhaps job security itself. But there are small things we can change or offer. Maybe Susan is sick of being on camera all day, and wants to join meetings by audio only. Maybe the 8am time of your daily huddle is making it hard for Josh to get breakfast, walk the dog, and get his kids started on daily activities. 

• Let go of expectations that no longer apply. What responsibilities from the pre-Covid era are no longer relevant or possible? Within the team, help each other decide which expectations are on hold, which are different, and which continue right along. Set a timeline to re-evaluate these changes. For example, “We will circle back to that project in a month and decide if it makes sense to restart it.” 

• Establish new priorities, and the fact that these will continue to change. Even though everything is different and we don’t know what will happen, people still need to hear what good looks like now. Engage the team in figuring out what the new expectations and priorities are, including the priority of staff safety and wellbeing. I am saying “the next normal” and not “the new normal,” because “normal” will continue to evolve and shift over the next several months and years.

In a period of fear, loss, and uncertainty, there is an opportunity for teams (at work, as families, in personal and professional networks) to be the strength and stability for its members. With our investment in human connection and support, the team can be an anchor and a source of strength as we move forward. Even when, or especially when, we feel like a para-annoyed little bouncy ball.