"You can tell a good sailor in a storm"

Charisma Principle 1: BE INITIATIVE

In crises, fast action is the rule of the day. The reason for this is the human brain, which cannot withstand the combination of confusion and threat for long. Even if intense reflection and differentiated action would be goal-oriented, the brain stem takes over without further ado. Posterous decisions and slogans have an attractive effect under pressure. The law of action determines the strategy. What would be better now is smart action and excellent networking with your "flock". You now need to know quickly what is going on and what moves people. Leadership now takes place in direct contact with people, not at a desk. Sir Winston Churchill, as British prime minister during the world war, rode the subway for hours at night - crisscrossing London - to talk to the so-called "ordinary people" to find out what moves them. The rule for leaders is: bundle the ideas and needs into initiatives and proposals, and do it quickly before the populists strike, who have the advantage of the easily catchy blanket solution on their side. It is true that simple solutions to complex situations usually produce further consequential problems. But from the populist's point of view, this is the fault of others. For the populist, this is another advantage: Blame distracts from their own actions. Do not allow this. Be proactive. Assume interpretive authority on the basis of good listening.
Short message: Give direction quickly before populists do.

Charisma Principle 2: BE MEANINGFUL

In uncertainty, people's so-called "emotional need for interpretation" increases. Whereas people otherwise remain relaxed observers - loosely based on Franz Beckenbauer's "Let's take a look, then we'll see" - in crises the human brain is pushed into making sense of things quickly. The human being wants to classify, catalog and assign in order to escape the impending feeling of powerlessness. Motto: "If I don't have the situation under control, at least I understand it." Psychologically, this is actually reassuring, because clarity is reassuring, even if it is deceptive. This is because in uncertainty, the brain likes to unreflectively take the first solution that sounds plausible. And it must be easy to generalize. Motto: "Whatever can be agreed on quickly seems to be right." This is the reason why, in the long run, two camps usually form in crises, irreconcilably opposed to each other. The truth would lie, as so often, in the middle. Unfortunately, patience and an overview are lacking for differentiation. Prevent this camp formation by moderating, because otherwise the flock is split and has maximum half strength. As someone who understands these mechanisms, take over the process of interpretation. The magic word is "framing". Currently, it is often in the media and in disrepute because used by politicians as a method of manipulation. But at its core, framing is valuable. Tip: give each initiative several frames of meaning, so-called "context frames". Better yet, ask the flock for their needs and make a combined offer of "initiative + sense-making" from the addressee's point of view. In doing so, remember: "The dog food must taste good to the dog, not to the master."
Short message: Convincing means: Action only directly combined with sense and benefit.

Charisma Principle 3: BE OF INTEGRITY

Being sincere is very popular right now. Be yourself, then you are real: authentic. Unfortunately, this has nothing to do with integrity. Because if you are authentic, you follow your impulses and your own needs. "That's just the way he is," the environment comments indulgently on the missteps of the boss or the "swallow" of the mischievous soccer player. In crises, however, people look very closely to see whether a leader is credible. And that means: is he or she willing to put aside his or her own needs, to integrate himself or herself completely into the goal, to put himself or herself at the service of the common cause? In Denglish: "Walk your talk." Old-fashionedly called: Integrity. To differ: being "authentic" means being true to oneself. "Integer" means being true to a subject.
The recommendation: after you have successfully launched initiatives with meaning and purpose, lead with action and behave entirely in the spirit of the goal you have issued. Especially where it hurts yourself, because then it's real. Then you are considered credible. If you make this the general law of your actions, you will reap loyalty in the long run - i.e. allegiance without case-by-case examination. Those who enjoy loyalty are in a comfortable leadership situation. As stated in Charisma Principle 1, you are supposed to be proactive. This is easier if people follow you because you have proven yourself worthy of it. Then you create momentum. In German: "Es läuft!"
Short message: When it gets uncomfortable: go ahead!

Charisma Principle 4: BE EMPATHETIC

The meaning is always in the eye of the beholder, and there are many beholders. You have to win people over to an opinion today. In the feudal period of the Middle Ages, that was unimportant. For serfs and prisoners of war, "whose bread I eat, whose song I sing" applied. In modern society, however, the search for meaning by many individuals creates a drifting apart that needs to be tamed. "Commitment to mission statements and goals" is what modern management calls this. Those who are convinced do more than just their work, because they are "intrinsically" motivated, the supreme discipline of people management. Such "commitments" often count for nothing in crises. Because now "the shirt is closer than the pants."
Counting on an employer who is himself down for the count does not look like a model for success. Centrifugal forces are now released. As a boss, you're often the last to know. Prevent this by being close to the individual. Find out where the shoe pinches, and don't just focus on factual issues. In times of urgency, this is a common mistake, because quick and practical solutions promise success: But what matters far more to people in change now than the "what and how," is the "where to and what for."
Above all, ask about personal motives and emotions. Don't judge such conversations as time wasters. They are valuable investments. Because: If you yourself seem visibly powerless, why should your employees still chase after you. At best because you organize the flock well from their point of view and give a direction that many feel is relevant.
Short message: Winning people over with the principle: "First understand, then be understood."

Charisma Principle 5: BE CONSISTENT

By consistently acting according to these four principles, for example, the people around you will have the opportunity to recognize what kind of a brainchild they are, in good German: "how you are knitted". Motto: "Words become deeds, deeds become attitude, attitude becomes character." And you can feel it. In the best case, you have infected others around you with it. No - not with the corona virus - but with attitude according to the charisma principles mentioned.
Charisma literally means "gift of grace." Grace comes from the Old High German "gnähen" - today translated as "to draw near". This means: whoever sets out on the path and steadily approaches becoming better will be given a gift.
Short message: Who gives will be given back.