Crisis Communication in an Era of Constant Visibility and Immediate Reaction
In today’s hyper-visible world, an unexpected incident can instantly propel an organization or executive into the glare of public scrutiny. A single misstep, an unforeseen challenge, or a sudden accusation can become global news, amplified across social media. Within moments, reputations are questioned, stakeholders grow nervous, and a company’s very stability can hang precariously in the balance.
What happens next depends on who’s controlling the narrative.
In moments of crisis, clarity is rarely the first instinct. For Sam Wolf, it’s the discipline. As a communicator who has spent years navigating high-pressure moments from bolstering executives’ reputations to navigating business-critical crises, Sam has learned that what you don’t say usually matters as much as what you do. When I spoke with her in November, she offered insight into how crisis communicators prepare, think, and make decisions when the stakes are high and the pace is brisk.
Preparation
For Sam, strong communication starts long before a crisis ever unfolds. Preparation, she explains, isn’t about perfection – it’s about seeing around corners to reduce avoidable mistakes. “One of the things we talk about is how to ensure there are no unforced errors,” she says. “Errors will happen, but if you prepare correctly, the goal is not to trip up on simple things.”
That preparation is deeply personal and often repetitive. Before high-stakes moments – whether a major pitch or a client meeting – Sam needs to say the words out loud to make them real. Sometimes that means writing answers long-form and practicing them in the mirror. Other times, it looks like rehearsing alone in unexpected places. “I was in Chicago for a pitch earlier this year – I was up at five, in the empty hotel gym, talking to myself while walking slowly on the treadmill,” she recalls.
Collaboration,
While everyone prepares differently, Sam believes strong communicators don’t operate in isolation. Collaboration, she explains, creates space for multiple perspectives — often strengthening both the message and the delivery. She encourages asking simple but essential questions: What do you think of these answers? What am I missing? What haven’t I thought about? “That is the beauty of being able to work with great, smart people,” Sam says.
That collaboration also serves a deeper purpose: support. Especially during a protracted event, the hours and pace can be grueling – you need to have a trusted team who can tap in when you need to tap out. Crisis communication, she emphasizes, is not a solo endeavor. “You cannot do it alone,” Sam says. “You shouldn’t do it alone.”
Flexibility in Planning
For Sam, flexibility and agility aren’t optional — they are necessities. “In 2025, there is no such thing as not being flexible,” she says. Effective crisis communication, by nature, means preparing for multiple possible outcomes at once, and being able to pivot quickly as a situation changes or escalates.
That challenge is often compounded by incomplete information. “Sometimes information comes out as a trickle, and you have to pause and think, ‘What else don’t I know?’” Sam explains. Operating under uncertainty, she adds, often means working with assumptions – and resisting the urge to act before you have enough information to make a call.
Tailoring the message.
For Sam, effective communication starts with understanding who is in the room. Tailoring a message isn’t just about brand voice, it requires a clear read on both the audience and the broader landscape. Different leaders, she notes, often need different framing. “A CFO needs a crisp business message that will resonate with investors,” she says. “A CEO might be coming from a completely different place, especially depending on her audience.”
That awareness shapes how she approaches every conversation. Before refining the message itself, Sam asks a fundamental question: Who are you speaking to? “Understanding the landscape as well as the audience is key,” she adds.
Communication Under Pressure
In high-pressure moments, Sam prioritizes curiosity over control. Approaching a situation with an open mindset, she explains, allows her to absorb more information and see challenges from multiple perspectives. “Curiosity, being a sponge, helps you see things differently,” she says.
That openness is paired with precision. In moments where the stakes are high, attention to detail becomes critical. “Unforced errors in a high-pressure situation will kill you,” Sam notes, emphasizing the importance of knowing where to focus, and where not to.
To manage that pressure, she relies on a metaphor that helps her triage decisions in real time: “You’re juggling a bunch of balls, some are glass, and some are rubber.” The key, she explains, is knowing which ones can afford to drop. If it isn’t glass, it can wait.
She also reminds herself, and others, to release unnecessary pressure. “No one in the audience is hoping you mess up,” Sam says. “Nobody is rooting against you.”
On Staying Calm
For Sam, authenticity doesn’t mean reacting emotionally in the moment — it means being honest about what comes next. In high-pressure situations, she emphasizes the importance of calmly walking through consequences before making a decision. “You want to take the emotion out of it and say, ‘If this is the option, A, B, and C might happen. Are we prepared for that?” she explains.
That pause becomes even more critical when stress levels are high. “Nobody is sleeping well; everyone’s had too much caffeine,” Sam says. In those moments, she believes clarity comes from asking a simple but grounding question: “Are you cool if it plays out like this?”
Knowing When to Step Back
For Sam, knowing when to step back is just as important as knowing when to act. In moments of overwhelm, she encourages pausing long enough to regain perspective. “Is this really the thing I need to crash out about,” she asks, “or can I take a walk and come back?”
In an era where crises unfold in real time and public opinion forms in minutes, knowing how to respond matters. Whether advising a client or protecting one’s reputation, Sam’s approach is a reminder that effective communication isn’t only about reacting the fastest (though speed in these situations is critical) — it’s about responding with intention.
At its core, that intention is built on discipline, perspective, and trust: in preparation, in collaboration, and in knowing when to pause. When the pressure is highest, and the spotlight is unforgiving, her approach shows that calm, thoughtful communication can be the difference between a moment that defines a company and one it learns to move beyond.
