After the Storm: Leadership Reflections from a Mountain Hurricane - Part 2

From Adrenaline to Endurance

The First Taste of Tomorrow

There's a powerful shift that happens when you can first think beyond the next hour in a crisis. Six days after Hurricane Helene, standing on a friend's deck in Asheville, for the first time, I felt a confidence emerge that whispered everything is OK.

The turning point came that morning when we secured our last critical resources — fuel and cash. We navigated a backroad labyrinth to our friend’s, avoiding a mudslide the flood deposited at the end of her block. Her bar lay in ruins across the intersection. Its roof spilled into the back patio where we once gathered for horror movies on "Terror Tuesday." Half a picnic table dangled from a tree.

Standing at the railing, I looked down at a massive tree crushing her neighbor’s shed like matchsticks. Yet despite the devastation, all I felt was hope and possibility. We had supplies. Our emergency was over. And, for the first time since standing on the bridge over the French Broad, we could think ahead — not just hours but days. 

At that moment, I received a call from Tina, my business partner. From the start, Tina offered my wife and me respite at her home in Hickory, NC. Now that we could think ahead, I gratefully accepted her offer.

As leaders, we will encounter a turning point in a crisis — moments when the immediate emergency subsides and we can lift our heads to imagine tomorrow. Such moments pulse with possibility but remain adrenaline-fueled. The adrenaline that carries us through the crisis transforms into something seductive: a profound belief that sheer grit can rush everything back to normal — what I call "Hero Mode."

The Hero Mode Trap

We departed the following day to Hickory where the storm's impact thinned to a much gentler destruction. After a day of blessed normalcy — hot showers, internet, video games — I felt a surge of energy. 

My Hero Mode manifested in several ways - leaping at the prospect of rallying business leaders in economic recovery, planning supply transport, signing up for volunteer shifts. And I fully committed to returning to my business, intent on providing space for my wife to volunteer full-time and to manage a small fund supporting "hyper-local" causes. So when Tina mentioned a networking event the next morning, I jumped at the chance to restart business operations. I was excited! I was ready.

The next morning, surrounded by two hundred business leaders at the Hickory Crawdads ballpark, my readiness faded into the outfield. I watched as my mind kept drifting back to Asheville, to the communities still struggling, to the work left undone. I couldn't focus on networking conversations. My illusion of readiness crumbled, and I considered excusing myself. 

As leaders, how often do we unknowingly model an unsustainable pace for those we lead?

Hero Mode is intoxicating, its energy making every ambitious plan feel achievable. Yet, this drive often blinds us to the emotional and physical toll it takes on ourselves and those around us—whether in crisis recovery, project launches, or implementing major change. The paradox of Hero Mode is its allure: it feels necessary and empowering in the moment, but it risks prolonging recovery by ignoring our limits. 

This pattern reemerged in the days that followed. Back in Asheville, with power and internet restored, I’d fire up my laptop, driven to conquer the day. But as the screen glowed with anticipation and the internet hummed demandingly, my fingers remained still on the keyboard — my thoughts hopelessly scattered — paralyzed by a persistent inner voice demanding I "do more" which robbed my ability to focus.

While Hero Mode is a natural response to crisis, its seductive energy can linger, clouding our ability to lead others through the slower, steadier phase of recovery. This realization underscores a key leadership challenge: balancing the urgency of action with the wisdom of pacing. Leaders in any recovery phase—whether from an organizational setback or personal crisis—often feel this pull toward action before they’re truly ready. 

The challenge isn't just recognizing the patterns — it's finding a path forward which honors both the urgency of recovery and the reality of our human limits. Fortunately, I'm blessed to have a business partner in Tina, who is also my friend and coach.

The Wisdom of Restraint

While staying in Hickory, Tina's coaching helped me gain awareness — to start seeing my overcommits, to temper expectations, and to gently buffer my schedule.

I reconnected with memories and realized this wasn't my first hard lesson with Hero Mode. In the first month of COVID, I endured a terrifying burnout episode that left me with temporary memory and vision loss. That experience later inspired my talk, 'Burnout’s a Given,' which encourages leaders to reframe self-care as essential to fully supporting their teams. Tina helped me reconnect with this wisdom.

I recalled the value of adopting Minimum Viable Days. A Minimum Viable Day (MVD) was a technique my team applied during the pandemic. The principle is simple: rather than striving for full capacity, we meet ourselves where we are and set intentional, achievable expectations. During the pandemic, this practice wasn’t a coping mechanism—it was a cornerstone for me and my team to maintain focus and prevent burnout in times of uncertainty.

How might setting meaningful, focused priorities inspire our teams to value recovery and sustainability in their own work?

This practice became a blueprint for sustainable leadership. It reminded me that sometimes the greatest service we can provide to those we lead is showing them how to honor limits while making progress. Adopting this practice isn’t just about surviving the day—it’s about creating space and ensuring our energy matches the challenges ahead. In recovery, sustainable leadership is making meaningful, focused steps forward at a pace that honors what we've been through.

Another falsehood of Hero Mode became clear: meaningful impact in crisis recovery doesn’t require grand gestures. Often, it’s about smaller, sustainable actions. Asking, 'What realistic impact can I make?' helped me avoid discouragement when grand plans turned into overcommitments or simple voluntary acts felt insufficient. Hero Mode serves us in immediate crises but becomes a barrier in recovery.

Key Leadership Reflections

• Recognizing Hero Mode: Reflecting on my journey, I saw how easily leaders can mistake adrenaline for readiness. This distinction is critical, for our personal recovery and in how we guide our teams. While particularly visible in crisis, this pattern emerges whenever leaders face intense challenges — from major projects to organizational change. How might recognizing this pattern in ourselves help us guide others through their own recovery? Learning to identify this response helps leaders maintain sustainable performance in any high-stakes situation.

• The Power of Focus: True recovery requires us to resist the urge for grand gestures and instead concentrate on meaningful, sustainable actions. The Minimum Viable Day approach provides a framework for maintaining momentum while healing — a principle that serves leaders well beyond crisis management.

• Sustainable Recovery: Leadership strength isn't measured by how quickly we overcome challenges but by how effectively we pace ourselves and our teams. This truth, while essential in crisis recovery, applies equally to any significant organizational change.

These experiences with Hurricane Helene permanently transformed my understanding of leadership through crisis and recovery. What began as bearing witness on that bridge — that first lesson in the power of presence — evolved into a deeper truth about sustainable leadership.

My most profound leadership insight wasn't just about managing crisis, but about recognizing how these experiences shape us. When we learn to balance decisive action with patient recovery, when we value sustainable progress over heroic sprints, we don't just lead more effectively — we create space for our teams and communities to navigate their own path through challenge and change.

About the Author

As a Success Architect at Liberated Leaders, Alan leverages 20 years of experience in technology leadership and consulting to help businesses optimize their technology strategies, gain an edge, and scale their operations. He is a twice certified executive and leadership coach who firmly believes that true business transformation can only occur with mindful investment in people and technology. Find out more about Alan on our About page.

Note: This blog was 90% human generated and 10% machine (AI) generated.