We know we can be great partners and teammates in good times. But what about when the tide changes and the water gets choppy?

Let me paint you a picture.

It’s simple math.

The work may be messy. The human or team dynamics may be messy. But the team dynamics should never be messier than the work.

I was confident I knew what I was talking about six weeks ago when I started a blog series, #LeaderUP, sharing advice for how leaders can navigate during times of uncertainty. My intentions were good; I was full of energy and leftover grit and stored up momentum. I hoped the force of my productivity would muscle me and my family—and you—back to a normal I could understand. A normal I could predict.

A client asked me today, “how much is too much internal communication from our CEO?”

You know what I’m about to say.

As a leader, talk as much, and only as much, as you’re listening. That way, your words are relevant to people, speak directly to what they need to hear, rather than to what you need to say.