Operating with a Sense of Urgency

The Harvard Business School Working Knowledge website has a book excerpt from "A Sense Of Urgency" bu John C. Kotter. The section excerpted deals with urgency arising from crisis.

The problem with using crises to reduce complacency and create urgency is that the tactic is a potential diamond sitting on a rock surrounded by quicksand and very nasty beasts. Any naiveté about the downside risks can cause disaster.

Kotter lists four Big Mistakes that can be made when asserting or expecting urgency in a time of crisis. He makes some good points. Could be a good read. Mistake #2 is especially timely, "Going over the line with a strategy that creates an angry backlash because people feel manipulated."