How Leaders Should Talk to Their Team About Challenging Times

By Jayson Krause, Managing Director of Level 52 & Award-Winning Author of The Science Behind Success

Let’s cut through the noise. When you’re leading your team through challenging times, the last thing you need is a motivational quote that feels about as useful as a leaky bucket. So, let’s get real about what leadership looks like when the pressure is on.

First off, transparency. If you’re not being upfront with your team, someone else is filling that gap with rumours, assumptions, and worst-case scenarios. You have to get ahead of the noise with the truth—no sugarcoating, no half-truths. A half-truth is just a fancy lie. Your people can handle reality, but they can’t work with what they don’t know. Be clear about what you know and, just as important, what you don’t. Trust is built in these moments, and in tough times, trust is the most valuable currency you’ve got.

Next is empathy. Let’s be real: when times are hard, people are stressed, anxious, and scared. As a leader, your job isn’t to dismiss those feelings or pretend everything’s fine—it’s to acknowledge them. You’re not here to fix their emotions, but you are there to let them know you see it, you get it, and you’re in this with them. Empathy doesn’t mean having all the answers. It means showing that you care enough to understand.

Now, vision. In challenging times, it’s easy for everyone to get tunnel vision and lose sight of why they’re here in the first place. This is where you step in. As a leader, you need to remind them of the bigger picture—the purpose behind all the hard work, the goals you’re still chasing, the mission that matters. Vision isn’t just about painting a pretty picture of the future; it’s about giving your team something to focus on when everything else feels uncertain.

And then there’s resilience. Let’s not kid ourselves—challenging times are hard. That’s the whole point. But as a leader, you’ve got to model resilience. Not the “fake it till you make it” kind, but the kind that shows setbacks are part of the process, not the end of the road. Resilience is about bouncing back, not just from failure, but from the daily grind of challenges that test your strength and resolve. If you want your team to stay in the fight, you need to show them how it’s done.

So here’s the deal: when things get tough, your team doesn’t need you to be a superhero with all the answers. What they need is a leader who is real. Be transparent with them, lead with empathy, keep the vision front and center, and show them resilience in action. That’s the leadership that carries people through the hard times.

No empty promises, no clichés—just real leadership when it matters most.