Reputations can be built, attacked, and destroyed on social media. It's a huge game-changer - instantaneously emboldening adversaries and shortening the ride for any corporate or personal brand.
You don't want to appear as if you are not a team player, but at the same time, you don't want to be taken advantage of.
Sometimes people honestly don't realize the magnitude of their words and have no idea that boundaries have been crossed.
Smart people are no different than anyone else. Sometimes they exercise bad judgment, like we all do.
I definitely never had an affair with the president.
While it may be tempting to bask fully in the glory of success, remember: When a CEO takes too much credit for the good, they will receive far too much criticism for the bad.
Nothing kills a CEO's credibility faster than legal, regulatory, and/or ethical questions.
A crisis, by its very nature, is a negative event.
Unless you work in HR, it's not your responsibility to necessarily police and monitor workplace conversation.
Rightfully given near-deity status in the early days of industrial America, the J.P. Morgans, Rockefellers, Carnegies, and Vanderbilts of the world not only ran our country, they were also revered - and often despised - as larger-than-life personalities who could perform feats mere mortals could only dream of.
Oftentimes, rumors burn white hot only to fizzle as fast as they ignited.
While you are searching for a job, it is a good idea to be on your best behavior.
So many people apologize because they feel like they have to - that it's the appropriate thing to do, that it may help them down the road. But people can tell whether you're sincere.
I like to believe in the good in people. But we're all going to screw up from time to time. It just happens. It really is how our best growth occurs.
I will say this about the truth - that it's one of those crisis rules, whether you are a client or someone who's living their life just every day - is that the truth has a funny way of not going away, and telling the truth is extremely important in dealing with any problem or crisis.
Whatever the issue is or problem is, you have to own it, and you have to face into it. If not, it will just really get worse, and it will get compounded.
If I can, for whatever reason, inspire and motivate people, that's a good thing.
The truth of the matter is, when you think about it, we all make mistakes.
Most people somehow look at people in the crisis industry as fixers, but some things can't be fixed by an outside person.
My theory on an existing crisis is that you have to be very strategic about each case's unique elements. If a crisis involves a legal component, you need a communication strategy that complements the company's legal objective. A strategy for a plea deal is different than a case going to trial.
