Hi there,

Picture this: you’ve just learned your department is being restructured. You don’t know who’s affected, when, or why. And now you have to tell your team.

That’s exactly where we put Cynthia Conigliaro this week.

This week: Role-Play: Leading a Restructuring When You Don’t Have the Answers, Part 2

with Cynthia Conigliaro, MSW, MBA, CHWC, founder of Work Well Webinars​

Chris and I played anxious team members, and we didn’t hold back. Chris asked if he should start updating his resume. I said we were planning a family and a new home, and I needed to know if I’d still have an income. I even turned off my camera, just like an employee once told me she did in a real meeting like this. Cynthia stayed calm, honest, and kind through all of it. Then the three of us debriefed what worked and what we’d each do differently.

In Part 2 you’ll hear:

• Why “I don’t have all the answers” builds trust. People assume leaders know everything. Saying what you know, what you don’t, and when you’ll know more is more honest, and more calming, than pretending.
• How support can sound like bad news. Cynthia offered us two days off and asked for a list of our priorities. Kind gestures, but in the moment they sounded like the step before a layoff. That’s confirmation bias at work.
• The goal isn’t to make people happy. As Chris put it, nothing she could have said would have sent us out smiling. The goal is to keep people grounded, supported, and able to move forward.
• To answer the resume question or not? Cynthia chose not to. Chris would have said yes. They’re both right, and it says a lot about leadership style.
• The “internal resume.” One concrete thing anxious employees can do right now, and it helps them both inside the company and outside it.
• When caring leaders feel crushed. How to handle the self-doubt and “maybe I’m not a good leader” thoughts that show up after a hard meeting.
• Why pushing productivity in chaos backfires, and a lesson in ruthless prioritization from the ER drama The Pitt.

Missed part 1? Catch up here.

This week’s practice: The No-Answers Meeting

The next time you have to share news without the full picture, try this:

1. Ground yourself first. People under stress may not hear your words, but they’ll feel your tone. Take a few breaths before you walk in.
2. Say what you know, what you don’t, and when you’ll know more. “I don’t have all the answers yet. I’ll know more on Friday, and I’ll tell you then.”
3. Separate the change from the person. If it’s true, say it clearly: “This isn’t about your performance.”
4. Explain your support. Time off or a priorities review can sound like a warning. Tell people why you’re offering it.
5. Give one action. Invite people to write an internal resume: their skills, wins, and where they could add value. It turns worry into something they can do.
6. Afterward, be kind to yourself. Don’t measure the meeting by whether people left happy. Talk it through with a trusted colleague, and take care of yourself, too.

Hit reply and tell us: Chris asked, “Should I update my resume?” What would you have told him? We read every reply, and your answer might shape a future episode..