Leadership in Times of Crisis: The CALM Model

In good times, your gym will rise to the level of your marketing. 

In bad times, it will fall to the level of your leadership.

Your gym is more than a place to exercise. It’s a community of people united in a common goal. It’s a movement to change health and longevity in your town.

As the owner of a gym, you’re the leader of that movement. Nobody opens a gym just to make a living. They open a gym to make a difference. It’s not just a job; it’s a crusade.

This week the CrossFit community experienced a tragedy: a death on the CrossFit Games swim course. Every gym owner is going to face a crisis in their community at some point, too.

My job is to lead the Two-Brain movement: to help caring, compassionate coaches build sustainable gyms that last for decades; provide opportunities for other coaches who are on the same mission; and actually change lives.

You can’t become a better leader by reading a book or taking a course or participating in a round-table discussion on leadership. You become a better leader by leading through a crisis and evaluating the effects of your actions afterward. You do that by having mentors and models, and we do that through mentorship at Two-Brain. 

One of my personal mentors is Bonnie Skinner. Bonnie is a registered psychotherapist and the founder of Level Up Mental Fitness Coaching. 

On this special episode of our podcast, Bonnie will answer questions such as:

• “Should we talk about this?”
• “Is it important to get in front of the conversation with our community?”
• “Should we post online about our feelings, or should we wait and calm down, or should we say nothing at all?"

Then I share a model for communication that I fall back on to help me in times of crisis. It’s called the CALM model, and it can be used by leaders in any challenging period. I’ll lay out the structure and use the CrossFit Games tragedy as an example.

Clarity: Here's what happened: It's a tragic accident.

Assurance: These are high-level athletes who understand their risks and eagerly accept them. He would have wanted the Games to continue for his brother, his fellow competitors, his fans and all of us.

Leadership: Let's all remember how fleeting life can be and reflect on it during our gratitude practice this week.

Movement: We're going to remember him with a tribute on Monday.

Your clients will always look to you for leadership in times of crisis. Help them by going first: Don't wait for them to see some of the horrible criticism online. Help by keeping them focused on the athlete and his family. Help by giving them a way to express their grief, memorialize the person and lean on their community.

Being a leader doesn’t mean inventing solutions from scratch; it means seeking and finding the best way to lead.

You can use others as models—you can read biographies, for example. Or you can find a mentor.