In a Workplace Empathy survey from Businessolver of employees say they’re afraid to talk to a manager or HR about mental health issues because it could negatively impact their job security. However of CEOs worry that being too empathetic can cause them to lose respect. Yet if they look at the benefits for the company they’ll find it’s well worth the time investment. For example of employees and HR professionals say that an empathetic organization can increase employee motivation. Other benefits include: Improved employee morale since they have managers that are care about their needs Increased respect and collaboration among teams Higher productivity and engagement as workers feel supported and valued Enhanced customer loyalty once they see your company is humane when speaking on humanitarian issues Reduced employee turnover The takeaway: management teams to foster workplace empathy. And train customer-facing teams and PR personnel to have empathy in their communication.
Empathy communication skills So what skills do you need to become efficient in empathetic Email Marketing List communication? Is it offering a shoulder to cry on? Or is it being very agreeable? According to Jamie Mitri founder of moss retailer Moss Pure you must clarify what empathy is before you can improve your empathetic communication. “Empathy isn’t showing sympathy for another person or trying to be a problem solver for another person ” says Mitri. “It's understanding the other person’s viewpoint. It doesn’t mean you must agree with that person or feel sympathetic but rather place yourselves in their shoes and understand why they feel the way they do.” Tim Taylor co-founder of the nonprofit America Succeeds suggests leveraging skills such as compassion mindfulness and collaboration to expand your ability to communicate empathetically.
“For example there’s more than one way to manage someone failing to meet the expectations of their job ” explains Taylor. “Did something happen with them outside of the office that’s impacting their ability to get the job done? And if so do they feel comfortable sharing that with you?” If they don’t then this is a clear sign you need to work on your empathetic communication and create an atmosphere that fosters open communication. Once your workers feel comfortable talking to you find ways to support them within and beyond their roles and responsibilities.