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Reframing Hard Issues in a Crisis

Heather Kernahan

The quickest path to limiting solutions to big hard issues is being locked into a fixed way of thinking, without input or perspective. In times of crisis our brains quite literally seize up like a door handle on a winter day. A quick tool that can be deployed to thaw out our thinking and move to an open mindset is reframing. It can also be an unsettling tool because it forces you into finding alternatives that you previously thought were impossible. We are living in a world of impossible right now so there is no better time to use reframing to manage the hard issues you’re facing.

Reframing is where you take a thought and turn it around or upside down to get to another point of view. Over the past week here are thoughts I’ve heard from my team and clients and how they’ve been reframed so that they could move forward:

  • This is hard to we do hard things
  • This is complicated to I’m in a position to make the complicated as clear as possible to help others
  • I’m scared to I’m scared and I’m taking action anyway
  • I don’t have all the information and worried I’ll make a mistake to I’m making the best decision I can now with the information I have
  • No one can help me figure out what to say to my team to there are so many resources available for help right now

Reframing is just one tool to use in a crisis and one you can practice right away. Here’s more about reframing for problem solving.

Check out our HotComms Toolkit for more resources on navigating in uncertain times.