If you’re like us, you’ve spent a lot of time trying to adjust to this new reality brought forth by the COVID-19 pandemic while also trying to settle with the uncertainty of what’s to come. So often, what incites fear and anxiety in an unexpected crisis like COVID-19 is the confusion people feel about the situation.

For months people across the country — and the world — have been thrust into a series of changes to their everyday lives, with no sign of an end.

Strong and clear communication cuts through the confusion and alleviates the fear of the unknown, and it’s one of the only ways to get a group of people to take a specific, aligned action — like wearing a mask or socially distancing themselves from others.

Whether you’re communicating during a public health crisis, a leadership transition or simply a general update on your organization and its mission, it’s imperative that you lead with transparency and consistency while aligning with all relevant parties to ensure your communication resonates with your audience.

Leading with Transparency

Being transparent goes hand in hand with being trustworthy. A lack of transparency impacts the level of trust the public has with leadership. Once there is no trust, words and messages are meaningless — especially in a rapidly changing situation like COVID-19. Without transparency, people will be left to question the validity of your statements and intentions moving forward.

Transparency in your communication — both internal and external — is essential to leading others successfully. Be honest and upfront about what you know about a situation, when you know it.

Ensuring Messaging is Consistent

From the beginning phases of the pandemic to now, there have been a variety of reactions on the severity of the coronavirus, as well as precautionary recommendations from leadership. Take mask-wearing as an example. At the beginning of the pandemic, individuals were urged to avoid wearing masks to ensure their availability for healthcare workers — while stressing their ineffectiveness. Now, months into the pandemic, mask-wearing is the new normal, with local governments and corporations requiring masks be worn nearly everywhere.

While it’s true that our understanding of what to do and say during a public health crisis can change as additional information is presented, keeping the message as consistent as possible is key to people trusting and retaining it. Since new information has shown that wearing a mask is effective in stopping the spread of COVID-19, public health officials in coordination with the White House have urged mask-wearing in areas where social distancing isn’t possible. But the President and some elected officials across the country have rejected the validity of wearing a mask — often citing the initial consensus on them.

Aligning Communication with Others

Throughout the crisis, individuals across the country have expressed frustration about the lack of clarity in moving forward and knowing the best ways to protect themselves and their families. From the White House, to the CDC, to local governments and school boards, there are a lot of institutions and individuals in charge of easing the anxieties of others amid this crisis. The lack of a coordinated response and a strong message has caused confusion and angst across the country. Effective messaging at this scale begins with aligning with all relevant leadership and entities prior to making any public statements. This will solidify the message and make certain that you’re all saying the same thing, at the same time. Having a list of talking points and FAQs for your stakeholders to follow is a practical way to ensure messaging is aligned from the top down to avoid a muddy response.

When you provide others with a clear, consistent message, you’ll get closer to the response that you desire. Knowing there’s light at the end of the tunnel and what it’s going to take to get there has eased the minds of individuals across the country as we navigate this truly unresolved crisis.