Stress is demanding. But our brains can adapt remarkably well. In fact, according to experts in health psychology like Laurel Mellin, if we train our brains “for the high-stress times in which we live, just about every aspect of life would improve.” In other words, we can replace mental patterns that inhibit us with thoughts and strategies that prime our minds for action and resilience.

I see similar potential for social impact organizations. Mastering the strategies that serve us during a crisis can fundamentally improve the way our organizations operate—long after the crisis is over.

During the last year, I helped bring to life two COVID-19 pandemic response initiatives: COVID-19 Action Fund for Africa (CAF-Africa), a collaboration between more than 30 partners to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) to community health workers in Africa, and Pandemic Action Network, through which more than 120 members help accelerate the global COVID-19 response and prepare the world for future pandemics.

Like many other efforts, the pandemic forced us to work in crisis mode; we had to assemble teams and partners extremely quickly and work in unconventional ways. Yet despite the challenges, the initiatives have procured more than 81 million units of PPE in Africa and reached more than 3.5 billion people in 117 countries about the importance of wearing masks.

Among the approaches we’ve taken, three have stood out: forming loose partnerships, putting ego aside, and acting with urgency. While these strategies aren’t new to the social sector, they have proved particularly vital to our success during the pandemic. I believe more organizations can find them vital as well, as they come together outside times of crisis to accelerate progress on all kinds of issues.

Read the full article about working in a crisis by Gabrielle Fitzgerald at Stanford Social Innovation Review.