READ ON THE STREET

Contrary to what Blaise Pascal and his philosopher pals may say, I’m finding solitude to be largely uninspiring. Intense feelings of claustrophobia intermingle with a growing distaste for those around me; like stale milk diffusing in a mug of tea, before long the former renders the miserable beige brew wholly unpalatable.  
 
You see, I have opted to socially distance in a house full of people. I left London on the threat of impending lockdown and was urged by friends (now discredited) to get the heck out of there.
 
That was two weeks ago. Two solid weeks of family time later – dog walks and rubbish telly, chit chat and incessant washing up (why is there always so much washing up?) – and there’s no end in sight. Add to that the worry of grandparents in varying states of decay and isolation dispersed across the country, and you’ve got yourself a pretty toxic stew.
 
In particular, I’m finding big picture thinking to be a challenge, even on my daily state-sponsored exercise, would you believe? And I don’t think I’m alone. Mental noise – such as media or social media – in high-stress situationsreduces our ability to process information by 80% on average.
 
Great leaders are able to cut through that noise, to provide the clarity and direction for which we all yearn.
 
For companies, the behaviour of their leaders today will define their reputations long into the future. This crisis doesn’t exist in a silo, after all; it is a moving part of an interconnected, digital world – one that doesn’t forgive easily and definitely doesn’t forget.
 
It is also unprecedented, unwieldy and unpredictable, so defining good leadership can feel like a fool’s errand. We may not truly know until this is all over and for now, we’re all just trying to muddle through.
 
But there has been a lot of good commentary over the past few days on what great leadership looks like, so this week we decided to bring you the pick of the bunch.