18/06/2025
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐ง๐๐ซ๐ ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ก๐๐ง ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐จ๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐ฅ๐๐ญ๐ฌ ๐๐ก๐๐จ๐ฌ ๐ซ๐๐ข๐ ๐ง?
I used to work in the medical device sector, before I began to grow my taxi service into the VIP service machine that the Summit is today! You might not think that medical devices can bring chaos into your life, but youโd be surprised.
I was becoming a firefighter, surrounded by other firefighters who seemed to thrive on chaos and actually need it in their lives to feel essential and successful at their job. I learned however, that it doesnโt have to be that way โ I could be the one who sees the chaos coming and be prepared for itโฆ
๐๐๐ง๐๐๐๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ง ๐๐ค๐จ๐จ๐๐จ ๐๐ง๐๐๐ฃ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช๐ง ๐๐ฃ๐๐ง๐๐ฎ
I learned that the leadership and communication style of a boss who thrives in chaos is one of rapid reaction and quick-fire direction. This can take a toll on your energy when you have to be responsive to immediate change. This style of communication can even have longer lasting psychological effects and change your own natural demeanour into something it isnโt and arguably shouldnโt be. You become exhausted, stifled and stop developing strategic growth and creative thinking.
๐ฝ๐ช๐ง๐ฃ๐ค๐ช๐ฉ ๐๐จ ๐๐ช๐จ๐ฉ ๐๐ง๐ค๐ช๐ฃ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐ค๐ง๐ฃ๐๐งโฆ
A study by the American Psychological Association found that a chaotic crisis-driven environment leads to:
โข Chronic stress and exhaustion from being in a constant state of urgency
โข Decision fatigue due to constant shifts in priorities
โข Disengagement and high staff turnover, as employees become disillusioned
โข Loss of strategic focus, with teams focusing on short-term fires rather than long-term growth.
And who gets the credit for putting out the fires? You guessed it, the boss, and not the team who couldโve prepared for the fire ahead of time and put it out before it blazedโฆ
๐๐ค๐ฌ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐จ๐ช๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ช๐ฃ๐๐๐ง ๐ ๐๐ค๐จ๐จ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐๐ซ๐๐จ ๐ค๐ฃ ๐๐๐๐ค๐จ
Rather than always trying to keep up with the chaos and training for sprints and quick turns, think of the workplace as a marathon, where sustainability is what you need to train for.
Focus on your boss and what they need to hear and be made to feel to achieve success โ recognition mainlyโฆ
๐พ๐๐ก๐๐๐ง๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐จ๐ข๐๐ก๐ก ๐ฌ๐๐ฃ๐จ ๐ก๐ค๐ช๐๐ก๐ฎ
The wins that didnโt come through emergency response. Make sure your boss feels they were intrinsic in the success, and theyโll eventually associate praise with no-pressure wins. Youโre trying to prove thereโs value in crisis prevention instead of crisis management.
๐ฟ๐ค๐ฃโ๐ฉ ๐ข๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐๐๐ค๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐ฉ๐ ๐๐๐๐ค๐จ
The more the team meets the bossโ energy with the same, the more the boss will feel validated in their firefighting leadership style. Itโs tough to do, but if you can remain calm, set boundaries and resist the intensity of the situation you can reframe it in a way that prioritises logical thinking rather than reactive thinking.
๐๐๐ง๐๐๐๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ง๐จ ๐ง๐๐๐ค๐๐ฃ๐๐จ๐ ๐จ๐ฅ๐๐๐ ๐๐ฃ ๐๐๐ญ๐๐ฃ๐ โ ๐ฃ๐ค๐ฉ ๐ฅ๐ง๐๐ซ๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ
Can you find a way to present proactive efforts to prevent chaos as a series of fast measurable wins? Firefighter bosses donโt often notice a problem that never occurred, so bring that problem back a few steps and turn the preventative measure into the tactic that requires quick action.
You have to be resilient if you want to be the change that your workplace and colleagues need. You need to be a leader in yourself and pull together the rest of the team so they can work on the same tactics, and you need to make sure you have a team of people you can rely on supporting your efforts.
Remember, we all have emergencies from time to time - thatโs not the problem. The problem occurs if the same emergency keeps happening โ thatโs poor planning, and you CAN fix that!
๐๐๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ง ๐ค๐ ๐ข๐ฎ ๐ค๐ฌ๐ฃ ๐จ๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ก๐ ๐ค๐ ๐๐๐๐ค๐จโฆ
Once, I was the one redirecting energy in my team. Now, as owner of The Summit Chauffeurs, I no longer have to fight the chaos. I can plan every journey, adapt to last minute changes to plans, and be trusted to meet any last minute emergency with calmness.
I hope you donโt have to out these tactics into practise, but if I can be of any help, especially when it comes to planning events and corporate travel, you know where to find me.
๐
๐๐ฝ๐ถ๐.
