In our ever-diversifying and increasingly polarized world, being a leader that can build bridges across a spectrum of views is not just a nice-to-have skill—it’s a necessity. While this is a nuanced task under any circumstances, the stakes are exponentially higher in times of crisis, be it a financial downturn, a public health emergency, or even conflict situations like war. These pressures often challenge the collective patience and resilience of a community or organization during a time when they need unity the most.

The “Bridging Differences Playbook” by the Greater Good Science Center provides a comprehensive framework for creating positive connective tissue within a community or organizational body, categorizing skills and strategies into intrapersonal, interpersonal, and intergroup levels. Intrapersonal skills are those that build your own capacity for more positive interactions with other people and across groups. Interpersonal skills make those interactions go more smoothly. Intergroup skills are those that you can use when bringing other people or groups together—these skills are especially relevant to leaders or facilitators trying to guide others toward better interactions and deeper understanding of one another.

Intrapersonal

The Foundation: Emotional Intelligence and Mindfulness

At the core of this skillset is emotional intelligence, a concept that goes far beyond mere cognitive intelligence. Your understanding of your own emotions, your ability to regulate them, and your adeptness at interpreting the emotions of those around you lay the foundation for any open, constructive dialogue. Moreover, the practice of mindfulness enhances your emotional intelligence by making you fully present and engaged in your interactions, a quality that becomes ever more invaluable when navigating the emotional landscape of a crisis situation.

Deepening the Inner Work

The need to assume good intentions in both routine and fraught interactions is foundational to positive engagement. Starting from a place that expects goodwill from others not only sets the dialogue on a constructive course but also fosters an environment of trust. From this platform of trust, expanding your activities to diversify your experiences becomes easier. As you broaden your viewpoints, your capacity to relate to those who think differently from you grows. This pliability in thought opens the door to more creative problem-solving approaches, especially during crisis situations.

Beyond this, we also learn from the playbook the importance of looking for information that defies stereotypes. Such a quest can drastically alter the narrative, particularly in tension-filled circumstances. It’s here that focusing on the individual rather than on group identities gains prominence. In a world fraught with labels and categories, recognizing the uniqueness of each individual becomes even more critical during times of strife.

Interpersonal

Beyond Listening

When building bridges, the goals is not to change someone’s mind or build consensus, but to understand and appreciate their perspective. Focus on listening and empathy and suspend the natural inclination to judge.

Listening, as simple as it may seem, is an active rather than a passive endeavor. Engaging attentively and compassionately with someone else’s viewpoint not only leads to better understanding but also can resolve complex issues, a particularly important capability during times of crisis when communication gaps can lead to catastrophic misunderstandings. In such environments, it becomes imperative to look at the individual as a human being with complexities, fears, and aspirations, setting aside any preconceived notions rooted in politics or affiliations. This aligns well with the playbook’s advice to prioritize the person over the politics and to gain a deep understanding of their underlying values.

An essential part of advanced interpersonal engagement involves the mutual exchange of perspectives. As you offer your viewpoints, being open to receiving the other person’s perspectives leads to a collaborative rather than antagonistic dialogue. In crisis scenarios, this multifaceted approach often results in solutions that are not only nuanced but also effective.

Intergroup

Shared Identity, Goals, and Collective Action

In both commonplace and extraordinary settings, focusing on shared identities and goals can harmonize disparate groups remarkably well. When the spotlight shifts from what divides us to what unites us, real change becomes achievable. This playbook approach emphasizes precisely this focus, urging us to put solutions at the forefront rather than dwelling on differing identities.

Bridging the Intergroup Divide

Creating conditions that facilitate intergroup interactions is a vital aspect of crisis management. By establishing an environment that encourages these encounters, you build a setting where prejudices can be broken down and a shared sense of purpose and community can emerge. This is particularly important in crisis situations where divisions can otherwise deepen quickly.

Leading with Grace, Resilience, and Adaptability

The strategies outlined in the playbook aren’t static; they’re adaptable and flexible, depending on the scenario you find yourself in. This is leadership at its best—a leadership style that adjusts its strategies without compromising its core principles. This resilience and adaptability are what see leaders and their teams through crises of any scale.

How you lead during times of conflict and crisis speaks volumes about your leadership style and sets a precedent for the future. Whether you’re navigating the natural disagreements that arise in any workplace or steering an organization through a severe crisis, your actions leave an indelible impression that can shape organizational culture for years to come. To lead is not just to manage or to dictate, but to unite and to inspire. Remember that your ability to build bridges doesn’t just solve the issue at hand; it creates a legacy of inclusivity and understanding.