Leadership Lessons: Thriving Through the Pandemic

By Cindy Plonien, DNP, RN, CENP

As healthcare faces the second wave of the COVID pandemic, it may be a right-time to stop and think, reflecting on what has worked well and what has not worked so well in managing and leading organizations through the first wave of the pandemic. While some organizations have failed, others have thrived, blending innovation and adaptability, positioning themselves for success post pandemic.

Directly correlated to the outcome of every crisis is the attitude and approach of leadership, in leading people and supporting their organization’s mission.

In the book Stronger Through Adversity, Joseph Michelli relates exemplars from over 140 senior leaders of organizations that have successfully thrived through the chaos of the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020.

Book Review: Stronger Through Adversity, written by Joseph Michelli

The book begins with an ancient proverb, shared by John Yokoyama, the 80-year-old long-time owner of the World-Famous Pike’s Place Fish Market in Seattle: “A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor.” Throughout the book are lessons and insights from today’s leaders as well as advice from leaders who have gone before us, triumphantly winning and flourishing through seemingly unsurmountable odds.

Chapter One reminds leaders, “Put Your Mask on First,” highlighting the significance of self-care for every leader and manager in an organization. While crises elevate endless needs to address threats, leaders who become absorbed in circumstance not only lose sight of their physical, mental, and social well-being, but often lose the ability for effective decision-making. As the book proceeds, the author addresses managerial success in relation to culture, communication, interaction, intention, and values.

As a reader, a takeaway for me was the significance of the “Law of the Hammer.” Michelli quotes Abraham Maslow: “I suppose it is tempting if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail” (p. 164). Michelli relates the “Law of the Hammer” to leadership’s inappropriate use of tried-and-true management tools, i.e., traditional, systematic planning processes, which, during the pandemic, rendered many organizations incapable of responding with speed to meet the needs for change. In comparison, successful COVID-19 leaders let go of familiar tools, well suited for other times. Successful COVID-19 leaders assessed quickly, acted urgently, and changed management and leadership tools and techniques, creating new processes, meeting the needs of changing times.

The book is newly published, no YouTube reviews to date, but highly recommended by this reviewer, with appreciation for the positivity in addressing leadership during the pandemic of 2020. The book is available wherever books are sold. The Introduction, Chapter 1 and 3 are downloadable as a sample on Amazon.com.

Michelli, J., Stronger Through Adversity: World-Class Leaders Share Pandemic-Tested Lessons on Thriving During the Toughest Challenges. McGraw Hill, New York, 2021.