How to Handle Personal Crises at Work: Advice for Employees

Navigating Personal Crises at Work

• 💡 This episode provides guidance for individual contributors and managers on how to handle personal problems that impact their work, focusing on managing oneself effectively.
• 🎯 The core principle is to manage yourself effectively rather than trying to manage your boss, especially when dealing with difficult managers.

Five Recommendations for Employees

• 1️⃣ Do the work first: While not suggesting work is more important than family or health, professionals have an obligation to their duties and colleagues. Spending time initially to address work responsibilities ensures work is handled so you can focus on personal issues.
• 2️⃣ Address the issue: Directly communicate about the personal problem.
• 3️⃣ Ask for support: Seek assistance from colleagues or your manager.
• 4️⃣ Ask for guidance: Request direction on how to manage your work during this time.
• 5️⃣ Communicate more: Maintain open communication, especially if you feel you are impacting the team or not performing well.

Understanding Crisis Types and Impact

• ⏱️ Acute crises are short-term (e.g., less than 24 hours), like a child needing stitches. For these, forwarding your phone, leaving an out-of-office message, and informing your boss is usually sufficient.
• ⏳ Chronic crises are longer-term (e.g., months), such as a terminally ill spouse. These require more extensive planning and communication.
• 📊 Crises can be categorized by duration (short/long-term) and impact (low/high), influencing the recommended approach.

Strategies for Different Crisis Scenarios

• 📌 Short-term, low impact: Forward phone, use out-of-office messages, and inform your boss.
• 📈 Long-term, low impact: Cross-train a colleague, create work instructions, and document important files and passwords to ensure continuity.
• ⚠️ Short-term, high impact: As soon as able, list urgent tasks, delegate if possible, and provide passwords for email and phone so colleagues can respond to contacts.
• 🚀 Long-term, high impact: If you have advance notice, work diligently to create a comprehensive plan with your boss and colleagues to cover your work. This includes warning customers and designating new contacts. Once prepared, be fully present with your personal situation.

Dealing with Difficult Managers

• 😠 Even with a tyrannical boss, following these professional steps is the best way to prevent them from finding fault.
• 🧠 You cannot control your boss, only yourself. Behave professionally, as character is what you keep with you after the situation is resolved.
• ✅ Maintaining professionalism, even with a difficult boss, will make you feel better and reduce worry, allowing you to focus on recovery or personal matters.