It is better to have someone who overreacts during a situation than someone who underreacts. They are often your most productive and attentive employees. That’s not to say the team member who cried wolf should be left to their own devices. Here are few tips that can come in handy to deal with such persons.
Empathise:
Problems might have different symptoms, but they often have the same antidotes.
Treat this person with the same empathy and understanding as an unproductive employee who struggles to meet deadlines.
When this person approaches you with something s/he considers urgent, don’t make the mistake of rolling your eyes or showing disbelief.
This dedicated employee is likely passionate about his or her role in the company. This person might have come from an organisation that praised urgent behavior, mislabeling it as heroism or passion.
Separate the critical:
Help this person understand that busyness doesn’t equal productivity. Pair them with an employee who is able to step back and see the bigger picture. Offer some focus tips, such as closing email and communication apps for set periods of time.
Don’t be tempted to scratch the itch of busyness. Urgent people tend to bounce around, accomplishing 20 small tasks on 20 different projects but don’t make significant progress in any one area.
This will help them resist the urge to respond immediately to every notification that pops up.
Keep calm:
When you’re in charge of a team of any size, you are bound to manage all types of personalities. That’s the beauty of teamwork. Each person brings their own unique set of strengths that, when paired with complementary strength sets, have the power to achieve amazing things within an organisation.
Your job as a leader is to be a calming force. When there is a legitimate crisis, your calming force needs to be at its strongest. Panicked people can quickly trample or be trampled by others; don’t amplify that by allowing chaos to ensue.
Courtesy: www.success.com
