When dealing with a crisis, a leader’s role is largely to guide others through it. Good leaders understand that everyone responds to crisis differently and know that they must be prepared for the myriad ways people may react when faced with tragedy.

Tragedies often trigger additional tragedies. When under the influence of the shock of traumatic stress, people and organizations often make errors in judgment that lead to additional losses. Rash high-risk decisions and behaviors, precipitous resignations, hostile blaming, drunk driving charges, violence at home and work, and increased suicide risk are examples of how traumatized people can make a bad situation worse.

When people are shocked by a tragedy, immediate chemical and neuro-psychological adjustments take place to address the present threat in one of three ways: Fight, Flight, or Freeze. Whereas these responses can have short-term survival value in the midst of a crisis, they often do not translate well to productivity in today’s work environments.