The ambition and focus that propel you to success can also be your downfall.
Judy Smith
There's always an opportunity with crisis. Just as it forces an individual to look inside himself, it forces a company to reexamine its policies and practices.
Allegations become facts, and facts become truth in the eyes of the public, whether they are true or not.
It's good to have a healthy ego because that pushes you to succeed. But when you cross a line, and your views are not balanced, that's when you get into trouble.
Establish and maintain good working relationships with co-workers. You don't have to be friends, but you do have to be friendly.
So many people apologize because they feel like they have to - that it's the appropriate thing to do, that it may help them down the road. But people can tell whether you're sincere.
Rightfully given near-deity status in the early days of industrial America, the J.P. Morgans, Rockefellers, Carnegies, and Vanderbilts of the world not only ran our country, they were also revered - and often despised - as larger-than-life personalities who could perform feats mere mortals could only dream of.
Whatever the issue is or problem is, you have to own it, and you have to face into it. If not, it will just really get worse, and it will get compounded.
Problems arise when we go through life relying too much or too little on particular traits, which, in turn, can lead to a crisis.
I think that scandal and intrigue and all of those sort of things that occur behind closed doors - whether it's on the Hill or in the White House - people all find intriguing.
My theory on an existing crisis is that you have to be very strategic about each case's unique elements. If a crisis involves a legal component, you need a communication strategy that complements the company's legal objective. A strategy for a plea deal is different than a case going to trial.
It can be a real blow to our egos when we feel as if our hard-earned degrees don't matter as much as our ability to get the morning coffee orders right.
Crisis is not a nine-to-five job... Crisis happens when you least expect it.
Most of the time, you think the problem is not as big as it is - because it says something negative about you or your company or your leadership. Face the reality: The facts are not as you want them to be.
When times are good, a CEO should remain poised and composed. When times are difficult, a CEO should remain poised and composed.
Make sure you are clear about the expectations your boss has for you.
I think, sometimes when we face problems and issues in our life, we have a tendency to really deny that a problem exists. Or sometimes we say, oh, it'll go away, or we can handle it. It's - you know, don't worry. I've got it covered. And a lot of times, that's not the case.
I think there are some things that just cannot be fixed.
Reputations can be built, attacked, and destroyed on social media. It's a huge game-changer - instantaneously emboldening adversaries and shortening the ride for any corporate or personal brand.
I remember having lunch with a friend who worked at the White House. I'd just graduated from law school but kept telling my friend what they needed to do and weren't doing right about the Iran-Contra affair. The next day, I got a call from the White House, offering me a job.
You don't want to appear as if you are not a team player, but at the same time, you don't want to be taken advantage of.
I've always been interested in image and reputation management. Because really, when you think about it, it is an old phrase, but all we have is our word and our good name.
Above all else, protect your brand. If you or your company doesn't live up to your brand's promise, own up to your error.
I love what I do, and to be able to see a show that is inspired by my life's work is exciting because it exposes people to what a crisis manager does.
Sometimes people honestly don't realize the magnitude of their words and have no idea that boundaries have been crossed.
Smart people are no different than anyone else. Sometimes they exercise bad judgment, like we all do.
Look at the facts as they truly are, not as you want them to be.
A wonderful quality about America is that we love redemption stories. We're quick to lash out and assign blame, but we also draw from deep reservoirs of forgiveness.
Workplace romances - or even the illusion of a workplace romance - can carry many ramifications and consequences.
I charge by the hour, or I am on a retainer. We try to work with the client.
I definitely never had an affair with the president.
While it may be tempting to bask fully in the glory of success, remember: When a CEO takes too much credit for the good, they will receive far too much criticism for the bad.
Nothing kills a CEO's credibility faster than legal, regulatory, and/or ethical questions.
A crisis, by its very nature, is a negative event.
Unless you work in HR, it's not your responsibility to necessarily police and monitor workplace conversation.
Oftentimes, rumors burn white hot only to fizzle as fast as they ignited.
While you are searching for a job, it is a good idea to be on your best behavior.
I like to believe in the good in people. But we're all going to screw up from time to time. It just happens. It really is how our best growth occurs.
I will say this about the truth - that it's one of those crisis rules, whether you are a client or someone who's living their life just every day - is that the truth has a funny way of not going away, and telling the truth is extremely important in dealing with any problem or crisis.
If I can, for whatever reason, inspire and motivate people, that's a good thing.
The truth of the matter is, when you think about it, we all make mistakes.
Most people somehow look at people in the crisis industry as fixers, but some things can't be fixed by an outside person.
My experience at the White House was invaluable.
When you're at the center of the universe, you have to think quickly and size up a situation instantly because, whether you like it or not, you're going to be on the news the next day.
If your response to a problem or scandal isn't genuine, followers will sense it. And remember, by saying nothing, you're saying something.
Protect yourself by always having a record of what transpired or was said in any situation that might be considered sensitive.
If you make a mistake at work, address it as soon as possible - don't hide it.
When clients are involved in a crisis, we often start at the end. When this is over, where do you want to end up? What's your endgame? We try to start from that and work ourselves back.
We all make mistakes, and sometimes the difference that we forget is that the people we read about in the paper and on the Internet and see on TV, behind that is, at its core, a mistake.
The same qualities that we all have that are good can lead us to bad things or lead us into a crisis if we don't try to balance them.
