What being a CEO has taught me about delivering bad news
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What being a CEO has taught me about delivering bad news
The trust you give is the trust you get
I recently had to deliver some bad news to a group of people. Delivering bad news is part of the job, and I don't want to complain about it. I don't take pleasure in it (on the contrary), but I also want to do it right. Kind of like a doctor who might need to do something that'll hurt the patient in order to make them better.
I think you can handle a crisis, or bad news, in a good or bad way, and I'm happy if I can make the best of a bad situation. There's a weird contradiction in there, but such is life.
I've learned a few lessons through the years in delivering bad news, and I thought I'd share those with you.
Announce, explain, repeat
When we do a presentation at TNW, we try to start with the actual announcement. Get it out as soon as possible, and don't build up to it. Then explain what and why, and then repeat the announcement and come to a conclusion.
I've often felt the need to first explain the why and how an