It’s obvious that small businesses, and large, are having a hard time surviving the pandemic the Los Alamitos Chamber of Commerce presented a speaker on Thursday to offer advice on “Leadership in Chaos.”
The Chamber has resumed their monthly networking breakfasts via Zoom, and Chairwoman Nesi Stewart introduced Los Alamitos businessman Dr. Joseph Johnson spoke to Chamber members about providing “Leadership in Chaos.”
“In every crisis, there is danger,” he said, “but opportunity as well,” said Johnson, the founder and CEO of The Telein Group, Inc., an advisory firm that has been based in Los Alamitos since the 1980’s.
In fact, he presented a slide which illustrated that the Chinese characters used to write “crisis” includes two words, “danger” and “opportunity.”
Because of the danger involved in any crisis, he said, it is easy to crippled by fear. However, he urged the business leaders to not be “overwhelmed” by the danger, otherwise they may “miss the opportunity” to found therein.
Seek first to understand,” said Johnson, “then be understood.” “Inquire. Appreciate. Advocate,” he said.
Johnson also gave the executives a process for dealing with the understandable fear that comes with a chaos. “Leadership is an attitude,” said Johnson, who gave Chamber business owners several nuggets of wisdom during his hour-long discussion.
“Life and work is an integrating act,” said Johnson, adding “everything is whole.”
He used the image of an iceberg to demonstrate that generally, a problem is like an iceberg that, at its surface, reveals only the “tip” of the problem.
Using the iceberg imagery, he gave those attending the “patterns” and “structures” lurking beneath the surface of a crisis that allows managers to more fully understand their dilemma and find their voice.
Generally, he said, “a problem reveals a pattern of activity that is tied to the structural and organizational culture.”
Using additional techniques, Johnson also demonstrated to his business audience to how and why to take a leap of faith” from fear to reach a point of love, which brings clear direction, superior performance and makes the organization “united in its effectiveness.”
