Adversity Reveals Character
Feb 15, 2020: Mt. Fuji, on a hike with my husband, shortly before concerns of the Coronavirus would limit how far and wide we traveled outside of our immediate community.
Originally published on LinkedIn, March 6, 2020
Living in Japan during a mild state of hysteria over COVID-19 has surfaced several truths. None of these are new, though perhaps they feel more acute as I live in a country where, for all intents and purposes, I am illiterate in a time of public upheaval.
Leadership matters (not that I needed another reminder).
A leader that does not inspire confidence on a good day will certainly not inspire confidence during a virus outbreak. This seems to be ringing loud and true for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan who seems steeped in political crisis. I'll let you deduce what that means for the United States.
Trust in institutions is essential.
When leadership fails, or falters, or people disagree, a deep-seated trust in institutions and the information they disseminate is critical. This trust takes time to build and everyday effort to keep. As an American, up until the past few years, I largely took this for granted. When agencies and governments choose to keep or alter information rather than reveal it, it erodes trust.
People need toilet paper.
This is a very important truth. At least for me. And in Japan right now, people hoard toilet paper in a crisis. This is highly inconvenient. I am up for all sorts of adventures, but I want toilet paper for all of them.
Transparent and regular communication is calming.
People need to hear things calmly and often, before it’s immediately necessary, especially in the era of fast news. It's a leadership basic that is too often forgotten. With calm and regular communication, people will know they need not hoard toilet paper … for example.
News that needs to sell will induce hysteria.
A news industry fed by capitalism is not in the public’s best interest in times of crisis. Cable TV is the worst offender here, but I was recently disappointed with a New York Times Opinion headline mixed in to my newsfeed, "Coronavirus Will Test Our New Way of Life. The outbreak threatens the stability of everything from information systems to Amazon orders”. This type of sensationalistic title mixed in with regular news is harmful when people go to the news for facts and the truth. The content of the Opinion piece was quite good and substantive, but the clickbait is disappointing.
'Adversity doesn't build character, it reveals it.' (James Allen)
Maybe this crisis will lead to long-term character building. But in the short-term, the revealing is what we experience. As a parent, community member and leader at work, I am reminded, for better and for worse, how modeling the right behavior sets the tone for everything that follows. The past few weeks have presented plenty of character-revealing opportunities from school being canceled, work being disrupted, family-wide lice, and a son in need of stitches on his head, to name a few. I’ll be glad if all of this helps build character, but right now I am learning more about the character it reveals.
May the inevitable spread of COVID-19 reveal the leadership and integrity required to manage the challenge, and give us examples to model for years to come. And may we all stay healthy in the meantime!