In my experience, the public will forgive mistakes, provided they are acknowledged promptly and a remedial course of action is articulated. Lawyers often get in the way of this, which is a subject I cover in my book: how to deal with obstructionist lawyers in a crisis.

A moderate amount of stress - not too much, not too little - generally means you understand the problem and are psychologically stoked to solve it. Moderate stress yields the best, most optimum performance in a crisis.

Unfortunately, today's colleges and universities, and especially our business schools, do not offer pragmatic crisis management teachings.

Too often, business schools teach academic crisis management theory, if that, but given the diverse and unique nature of crises, all the theory in the world will not help you manage an actual crisis unless you know the basic mechanics.

Mistakes are good provided you learn from them, and correct them promptly.

So many companies today, when first confronted by a crisis, go into a bunker mentality. They either say, "No comment," or they lie as a knee-jerk reaction. Neither of these sins, I believe, is generally committed on purpose. Rather, companies often panic when first confronted with a crisis and either say nothing, which looks like they're covering something up, or they speak what they wish was the truth.

In my experience, the public will forgive mistakes, provided they are acknowledged promptly and a remedial course of action is articulated. Lawyers often get in the way of this, which is a subject I cover in my book: how to deal with obstructionist lawyers in a crisis.