This past Sunday I was fortunate to attend Super Bowl 50 to watch the Denver Broncos upset the Carolina Panthers. Watching the highly favored Panthers struggle through adversity, I was reminded of how important leadership is during difficult times. It also reminded me of a short post by my LinkedIn colleague Ryan Roslansky entitled “It’s During Bad Times That You Can Tell if Someone is Any Good.” In his post, Ryan discusses about how character reveals itself not when everything is going well, but when it isn’t. A true measure of ones character he claims is defined when seas are choppy.

The start of 2016 has indeed been choppy and it is times like these that remind and reinforce for me the importance of leadership. I have been fortunate to witness great leadership, and have taken note of many approaches that I have tried to emulate. While many of these are relevant and important during the “salad days,” I think they are even more important when things don’t come as easy. Here are a top 10 list of thoughts for leading through challenging times:

1. Remember to invest in the core of what makes your company and team special, and do what you have to in order to protect it.
2. While it’s always good to review established priorities, don’t be quick to second guess your focus and decisions just because things are not coming as easily as they once did.
3. In difficult times, company and team culture mean more than ever. Make sure to reinforce and embody them when things are going smoothly so that you’ll be able to use them for support when adverse conditions arise.
4. People value and need leadership and support more during difficult times, so seize the opportunity to provide it and make it count. Don’t wait for it to come from somewhere else.
5. Pattern-matching has its limitations, so be careful about drawing conclusions too quickly.
6. Avoid engaging in blame and finger-pointing, and don’t tolerate it when you hear it.
7. Help others process change and challenges and demonstrate compassionate leadership.
8. Ensure that you have won the hearts and minds of your people before asking them to make sacrifices and give of themselves.
9. Make time for yourself and others to connect with gratitude, as this will help you all find and maintain perspective.
10. Demonstrate selfless leadership and find others who put their team and company before themselves.