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Key Takeaways Don’t implement sudden, sweeping changes at the first sign of disruption. Start small and prioritize strategically.
The traditional hiring playbook prioritizes credibility, technical skills and industry experience — but these are no longer enough. You and your team must be adaptable to survive the modern business environment.
Practice your crisis thinking skills — a.k.a. the deliberate practice of asking “what if” so you’re prepared to act when things go wrong.
On Jan. 15, 2009, U.S. Airways Flight 1549 struck a flock of Canada geese shortly after takeoff from LaGuardia Airport, a blow that quickly shut down both of the plane’s engines. Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger and his crew had just 208 seconds to do something for which they had never trained, with zero room for error: an emergency water landing on the Hudson River. Incredibly, they pulled it off, and all 155 people on board survived.
The event was quickly dubbed the “Miracle on the Hudson,” but it wasn’t quite that.
“I think, in many ways, as it turned out, my entire life up to that moment had been a preparation to handle that particular moment,” Sullenberger later reflected.
“One way of looking at this might be that, for 42 years, I’ve been making small regular deposits in this bank of experience… and on Jan. 15, the balance was sufficient so that I could make a very large withdrawal.”
A bird strike is one of those rare horrors that is virtually impossible to predict. But as a former Air Force pilot who later trained flight crews to respond to in-air emergencies, Sullenberger was about as versed in the unpredictable as any one person could be. When his impossible moment arrived, he had something better than a plan — he had a prepared mind.
As leaders in 2026, there is no possible way to anticipate every potential hazard or curveball the coming year may throw our way. Instead of trying to predict the future, do this.
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