Empathy In Leadership

Empathy In Leadership*

Last week I had the distinct pleasure of co-hosting the weekly #LeadFromWithin tweetchat with Lolly Daskal. The subject of my chat was “The Role of Empathy in Leadership” and I have to say I was gratified by both the level of participation and depth of contributions/insights which arose during the discussion (click here to download a PDF copy of the chat transcript).

Although I’ve written previously about the importance of empathy in leadership, I want to use last week’s talk as an opportunity to delve into this issue more, sharing some of the points I provided during the talk, as well as some of the insights proffered by the various participants. Here are the ten questions I asked participants as we discussed the role empathy plays in leadership.

1. What does empathy mean?

“Empathy means I demonstrate concern for & listen to reach understanding of others ideas & feelings.” – @scedmonds

In order to appreciate the role empathy plays in leadership, we first need to have a clear understanding of what empathy means. Most times, we tend to confuse empathy with sympathy; that to be empathetic means agreeing or relating to the feelings another person has regarding a given situation or individual.

However, what empathy really means is being able to understand the needs of others. It means that you’re aware of their feelings and how it impacts their perception. It doesn’t mean you have to agree with how they see things; rather, being empathetic means that you’re willing and able to appreciate what the other person is going through.

2. Why does it matter for us to understand the needs of others?

“By understanding others we can develop closer relationships.”

At first glance, this might seem a tad altruistic, but there are tangible benefits that are derived from making time to understand what those around us need, as opposed to what we perceive is required. Indeed, leaders who take the time to understand the needs of their employees can provide them with the support they require to press ahead, to deal with the challenges or issues that might be holding them back from achieving their goals.

By understanding and providing employees with what they need to succeed, leaders can build a sense of trust, thereby strengthening the relationships they have with their employees and consequently, the relationships employees have with one another, leading to greater collaboration and improved productivity.

3. What traits/behaviours distinguish someone as empathetic?

“Empathy requires listening, nonjudgmentalism, openness, emotional intelligence.”

I’ve written in a number of pieces about the importance of listening in leadership. And how effective or intentional we are in our desire to listen to what others are saying is a key trait among empathetic individuals.

Indeed, empathetic people listen attentively to what you’re telling them, putting their complete focus on the person in front of them and not getting easily distracted by what’s on their monitor or smartphone. They spend more time listening than talking because their want to understand the difficulties others face, all of which helps to give those around them the feeling of being heard and recognized.

4. Can we learn to be more empathetic or is this an innate trait?

“Empathy is human. We can develop empathy when we focus on others and commit to develop our authentic self.”

In the discussion that arose over my previous piece on empathy and leadership, I pointed out that contrary to popular belief, humans by nature are not self-centric or concerned only with matters of personal gain. Indeed, recent research into mirror neurons has proven that we’re wired for sociability and attachment to others; in other words, we’re driven to connect and understand those we interact with.

We only need to look at how the whole world not only reacts, but responds to natural disasters like those which struck Haiti and Japan to see that the drive for empathy is an inherent component of humanity.

5. What can we do to become more empathetic?

“Take a personal interest in people. Show people that you care, and genuine curiosity about their lives.” – @LollyDaskal

Given how empathy is a natural part of the human condition, our ability to demonstrate it to those around us is not as difficult as we might think. As mentioned earlier, one key trait of empathetic people is their ability to listen attentively to those around them. One way they do this is by paying more attention to both the verbal and non-verbal cues that are a part of everyday communication.

Making similar efforts will help you shift the focus from the story that’s in your mind to the actual message that’s being presented.

6. What role does empathy play in leadership? Why does it matter?

“When we understand our team we have a better idea of the challenges ahead of us.”

Let’s be honest, when it comes to the keys for successful leadership, empathy is rarely included in such a list. However, instilling a sense of empathy in how you lead those under your care offers a number of advantages:

• Empathy allows us to feel safe with our failures because we won’t simply be blamed for them.

• It encourages leaders to understand the root cause behind poor performance.

• Being empathetic allows leaders to help struggling employees improve and excel.

• Empathy allows leaders to build and develop relationships with those they lead.

7. So why aren’t we being more empathetic at work?

“Empathy takes time, focus, effort. Some ppl focus more on meeting deadlines than on the people who will carry you there.”

If it’s part of our make-up to be empathetic and that there are tangible benefits to fostering a sense of empathy within your organization, the question that naturally comes up is why then aren’t leaders taking the lead in making empathy a fixture in today’s business world. The most obvious reason (or excuse) is that the expression or recognition of any type of emotion in the workplace is still regarded as being a form of weakness (the rationale behind the well-worn phrase “it’s nothing personal; it’s just business”)

Of course, as is the case whenever there’s an examination of human interactions, the behaviours are rarely the result of one factor. Instead, it’s often due to a number of causes, which in this case includes:

• Demonstrating empathy is hard; it’s takes time and effort to demonstrate awareness & understanding.

• It’s not always easy to understand why an employee thinks or feels the way they do about a situation.

• It means putting others ahead of yourself which can be a challenge in today’s competitive workplace.

• Many organizations are focused on achieving goals no matter what the cost to employees.

In trying to address the apparent lack of empathy in today’s workplace, it’s important that we recognize that, much like an organization’s culture, it doesn’t come down to one element, but a series of inter-related behaviours and biases which serve to reinforce how leaders and their team perceive the value of empathy in business.

8. How can leaders encourage a culture of empathy?

“Create an environment were ppl feel it is safe to express their true opinion.”

One of the responsibilities of leadership is defining the long-term vision you have for the organization and establishing some short-term goals for your employees to attain in order to transform your plans into reality.

However, what distinguishes average to mediocre leaders from those who excel at leading others is how the latter group understands that their focus shouldn’t be simply directed to whether goals are achieved or not. Rather, their focus is also on fulfilling the collective purpose of creating something meaningful.

To accomplish this, leaders need to understand the inner purpose that drives each of their employees and aligning that with their organization’s goals. This requires that leaders be more open about their ideas and thinking and asking their employees about their thoughts on it. By spending more time learning about the needs of their employees, leaders can set the tone and approach taken by their employees to achieve their organization’s goals.

9. How can we use empathy to become a better leader?

“Empathy as a state of mind breeds more listening -> understanding -> leadership!”

By now it should be pretty clear that empathy plays a critical role in one’s ability to be a successful leader. But for those who might need more convincing, here are some of the ways empathy can help you to become a better leader for your team:

• You gain a greater awareness of the needs of your employees.

• Empathy allows you to create an environment of open communication and more effective feedback.

• It allows us to understand and explore problems employees face and how to help them resolve them.

• Being empathetic with your employees helps to validate what they’re going through.

10. If leaders could do one thing to create a more empathetic workplace, what would it be?

“Remember that people are not machines. They feel as well as produce.”

“Sawubona” is a Zulu greeting which basically means “we see you”. Now, this is not some variation of the royal usage of “we” in place of “I”. Rather, it’s their way of recognizing that how they understand what they see around them is a reflection of their perception that is derived not only from their own experiences, but from the stories and ideas passed down to them through their family and community.

Similarly, leaders need to remember that how we feel colours our perception of what we see going on around us and consequently, it’s important to understand those feelings so that we can respond and manage them accordingly.

It’s also important that we remind ourselves that the story we tell in our minds is different from the story playing in the minds of  others. It’s only through listening intently to others that we can begin to understand these differences.

As one of the pillars to developing empathy is being attentive to what others are saying, I’d like to end this piece with these two quotes which I think do an excellent job of capturing the very essence of the role empathy plays in leadership:

If you wish to know the mind of a man, listen to his words. – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care. – Theodore Roosevelt

Diversity (3)

Diversity-3*

1. Fundaments of Embracing Diversity

One of the most important things a leader can do, no matter the style or role, is to embrace diversity. Many people resist diversity because they resist change. Yet the diversity of the workplace is a trend that cannot be reversed, and it is creating change. Leaders need to do more than accept the change, more than accept the existence of diversity. To make diversity work, they need to be among the first to embrace it.

By modeling good diversity skills, by demonstrating their respect and appreciation for the differences among us, leaders can help others accept and value diversity. The fundamentals of embracing diversity include:

· Respect for others, for differences, for ourselves.

· Tolerance for ambiguities in language, styles, behavior.

· Flexibility in situations that are new, difficult, or challenging.

· Self-Awareness to be sure you understand your reactions and know what you bring to the diverse workplace.

· Empathy to feel what someone who is different from you might be feeling in new or strange surroundings.

· Patience for change that can be slow, and diversity situations that might be difficult.

· Humor because when we lose our sense of humor, we lose our sense of humanity, as well as our perspectives.

3M is an organization dedicated to valuing the diversity of its workforce. Richard Lidstad, Vice President of Human Resources, says that respect is the key to embracing diversity. He tells a story of coming to 3M many years ago, during an era when male executives always wore sport shirts and Hush Puppies, and had a scraggly beard. The man turned out to be one of the company’s top inventors, holder of 13 patents. People had so much respect for him, for what he had accomplished, that they learned to ignore how he dressed. Lidstad uses that story to stress the importance of doing more than tolerating differences. To be a successful leader, he says, you need to embrace differences in people, their cultures, their ways of behaving in the world.

2. Communication**

Leadership requires excellent communication skills. Working in and leading a diverse workforce requires excellent communication. Communication skills are any executive’s, any manager’s, any leader’s most important skills. Understanding the meaning of communication is the first step to gaining those skills.

3. Defining Communication

Communication is the process of creating shared meanings. Yet the word, and that definition, mean much more. By exploring what “community” ( a word with the same root) means, we can come to an understanding of what we mean by “creating shared meaning.”

4. Community

Community can be broken into two primary meanings, one geographic and the other social. A geographic community is defined by physical borders that encompass areas where people live and work. A neighbourhood, a town, even a state or a country is a community, on progressively larger scales. All geographic communities consist of physical areas where people have certain responsibilities they must share, including maintaining the environment, protecting the communicty from outside forces, and assuring that the people within its boundaries ara as satisfied as possible. The community members must work together, come to agreement on many issues, all for the best of everyone. They share the concerns and goals, and often the values, of their communities.

A social community is a community with social rather than geographical boundaries. The gay community, the African American community, the nonprofit community, the Buddhist community, are all social communities. These communites, like geographic ones, have many interests in common. As a result, members of these communities share many responsibilities in the maintenance of their communities. Like geographical communities, they share concerns, goals, and values.

5. The Nature of Commmunication

Other words with the same root also contribute to understanding what communication means. When we “communicate with nature”, we become one with it. Communion in many churches means becoming one with God. To become one with, to share – that is the true nature of communication. Communication is that process by which we become one with others, not completely or totally, but insofar as specific meanings and specific understandings are concerned. We share a part of ourselves, our message, our meaning of words and behavior, with another.

We all have different frameworks. We all come from different backgrounds, different experiences. What means something to one person means something different to another, so we need to work together, to dance with each other, to create a meaning we can share. By going through the process of creating a shared meaning, we understand each other, we communicate.

6. Communicating Yourself***

Sharing a part of yourself also focuses on another important element of communication: what we communicate. No matter what else we may want to communicate, or what meanings we want to create and share, we always communicate ourselves. The basic principles of communication include two truisms: as human beings, everything we do communicates something to those who hear or see us; and the primary thing we communicate is ourselves. In other words, we cannot not communicate ourselves.

A leader needs to understand that, by embracing diversity, we communicate ourselves as people who value and respect differences. By being leaders, we communicate ourselves as leaders.

7. Language and Communication

Creating shared meaning is not easy to accomplish. Humans communicate in an ambiguous way; we use words. Words by their very nature have multiple meanings. They are open to interpretation and context. In fact, one of the reasons we need to create shared meaning is because of the multiple meanings of our words.

We use words to create our reality. Words shape everything we understand, and create things we don’t see. When we look at creating our visions and organizational culture, the importance of language as reality will become more apparent. A leader who uses language so well that she can create reality, or her vision of reality, is a powerful leader indeed.

8. Diversity Tips

· Diversity is a fact of contemporary organizational life and will become increasingly so in the future.

· When positively and properly supported, workplace diversity can produce tangible benefits.

· Leadership is key to gaining diversity’s benefits, and can come from any level in an organization.

· Leadership also needs to come from the top.

· Communication and awareness are key.

• Neue Artikel

  • 8 Tips For Optimizing Social Media Video To Help Your Brand “Get Found Online”
  • Who Should You Follow On Twitter?
  • How To Integrate Emailmarketing, SEO, and Social Media
  • 15 Ways To Market Your Blog
  • Ten Ways To Handle A Social Media Plunder
  • Seven Steps To A Killer Social Media Plan
  • Suzuki As Independent As Ever, VW Discovering
  • What Are Your Social Media Goals?
  • Social Media Marketing Analytics (Part 1)
  • Why China won’t conquer the world
  • 4 Steps To Start A Conversation
  • Are You Falling For These Common Communication Myths?
  • Seven Things To Do Before You Start Your Business
  • As Social Media Grow, So Does First Amendment Appreciation
  • Vertrauen

• Tags

  Abwechslung Aggressivität Akzeptanz Audience Communication Creative Strategy Disclosing Diskurs Diskursstruktur Diversity Erfahrung Experience Fernsehwerbung Humor Information Cues Interests interkulturelle Differenzen Interkulturelle Kompetenz Ironie Kreativität Kultur Kultur als kollektives Phänomen Kultur als Orientierungssystem Kulturmanifestationen Kulturstanards Kulturstandards Leadership Normen Orientierungswissen Parodie Person Redundanz Sachkompetenz Selbstkompetenz Selbstkonzept Selling Social Media Sozialkompetenz Values Vertrauen Wahrnehmungssensibilität Werte Wissen Workplace Zuhören

• Link to Podcasts

  • Kultur

• Social Networks

  • facebook
  • Linkedin
  • Slideshare
  • Xing

• Categories

  Select Category Business Management  (2) Communication  (11) Foreign Politics  (1) Intercultural Negotiating Skills  (1) interkulturelle Kommunikation  (2) Kommunikation  (1) Konfliktmanagement  (2) Management  (13) Marketing  (8) planning  (1) Psychologie  (1) Psychology  (10) Social Media  (1) Uncategorized  (57)

• Archiv

  Select Month February 2012  (1) January 2012  (2) November 2011  (2) October 2011  (5) September 2011  (7) July 2011  (2) June 2011  (5) May 2011  (4) April 2011  (4) March 2011  (3) February 2011  (1) January 2011  (2) December 2010  (4) November 2010  (2) October 2010  (1) September 2010  (1) August 2010  (1) July 2010  (2) June 2010  (1) May 2010  (4) April 2010  (2) March 2010  (2) September 2009  (3) August 2009  (2) July 2009  (2) June 2009  (2) May 2009  (9) April 2009  (8)