How to Build Community in a Crisis

It takes four core elements to bring people together in difficult times

This is a unique time. A pandemic has put a halt to most of the outside world. Physical distancing and isolation are being enforced and can sometimes feel like an authoritarian regime. Industries are changing—some temporarily, some for good—and there’s a lot of uncertainty.

At the same time, life online is flourishing. Tools made to connect like Zoom and Slack are being used at an all-time high. Upskilling, learning, and continued education has skyrocketed. Netflix and Amazon Prime Video have seen unprecedented usage. Engagement on social media is blowing up.

Despite the difficult situation for many, there are also a plethora of positive changes coming out of the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis. Global collaboration is stronger than ever. Companies are considering remote work and distributed teams like never before, allowing for more flexibility for people and teams with different work styles. Now is a time where you and your company can lean into supporting your customers and your communities.

Authenticity is at an all-time high. As a community leader, you can nurture others with empathy, compassion, and realistic optimism. It’s an incredibly important time to provide support and safety to those around you from your team and colleagues to family and friends.

It is also a time to continue your offline rituals online. Keep up with your weekly happy hours and team all-hands meetings. Have virtual coffee with new connections and friends. Meditate and workout in your normal ways.

As a business leader, you can focus on empowering your customer community in all of these ways. Find time to write one-to-one messages using email and Slack. Send helpful resources that are specific to your users. If you have an online service, offer it at no cost while times are financially tough. Let your people know they matter. A thoughtful email from the founder or CEO can go a long way. Communication is the key to trust in these times.

There also may be ways your business is uniquely positioned to support the greater community with coronavirus treatments, prevention, or isolation support. Lean into that. Show you aren’t just supporting those around you but you are willing to help everyone. Make people proud to work for you and encourage their collaboration in spreading help.

Overall, a leader during a crisis will fuel their community approach with these four aspects of human nature:

#1 Emotional Intelligence

Leading with a high EQ (the IQ of emotions) will help you to empathize with others understanding their situation and emotional state in a time of uncertainty. This is the core of everything else. If you can understand what your employees, customers or colleagues are feeling, you’ll be able to better collaborate with them.

#2 Communication

Being a strong communicator who is clear, decisive, and upfront will aid community leaders in times of crisis. And not just speaking; communication is a two-way street. Listening and gathering feedback is just as essential. This type of communication has been prevalent during COVID through CEO and founder emails to their communities. Many of which have been very supportive and well written. One good example to follow is this letter from the CEO of Simple Habit, a mediation app, that addresses many of the common COVID challenges in the order of importance to their customer with extreme thoughtfulness.

#3 Safety and Trust

These are two of the most essential pieces of a human’s life. Without them, it is hard to concentrate, focus, or do anything else. You need to serve these needs first and foremost with your community whether that is employees, customers, or family. Once you do, you can take your efforts further into feelings of belonging and self-actualization.

#4 Do What’s Right

Don’t just empathize. Show compassion and act. Do the right thing. Whether that is removing financial burden for customers or alleviating it for employees. Companies have been stepping up and making big changes to prevent the pandemic spread, including increasing hourly pay, extending sick leave and paid time off, and utilizing short-term disability and family leave (FMLA) when possible. These are all solutions that support each other when times are toughest.

No doubt, it’s unclear what is to come. Being a leader means difficult decisions for many. Not all of which are favorable to everyone. But we will get through this. Together.