Balance the Power Dynamic
Douglas Ferguson
President @ Voltage Control | Facilitation Academy | Author | Educator
Empathy is having a modern workplace renaissance. While few would deny its importance, many perceive it as a soft-skill in the business world. However, this vital skill is so much more than that. Empathy is a pillar in leadership and innovation, a practice that is a cornerstone in how we function and operate as a team.
But don’t confuse empathy with sympathy.
As Dr. Brené Brown often points out, sympathy creates an uneven power dynamic. Sympathy understands a situation as you see it. Empathy understands a situation as the other person sees it. Dr. Brown famously explained, “Empathy fuels connection. Sympathy drives disconnection.” For leaders, empathy allows us to create bonds of trust. We can better make key decisions for our organizations by having a shared perspective,
To build that bond and connection, we must implore empathetic statements into our everyday leadership style.
Here are a few quick tips to infuse supportive empathy into your leadership practices:
Active listening is the only way to be empathetic to a situation. But in order to listen, you have to ask the right, sometimes tough, questions. Listening also includes paying attention to body language and the tone of voice for additional context.
2. Acknowledgment is vital.
Acknowledging someone’s feelings is a vital part in imploring empathy. In practice, this alignment shows your team you are genuine in connecting to their needs. It can be a statement as simple as “It has to be difficult dealing with this.”
3. Avoid rushing to advice-giving.
We often rush into giving advice wanting to diffuse and help a challenging situation. But we must wait to do this and let our colleagues fully express themselves and have their moment. Sometimes, we may find they resolve issues on their own just by talking things out with you.
4. “I” over “we”.
By using “I” statements over “we” you are actively taking ownership over situations in the workplace. It’s easy for us to fall into the habit of speaking on behalf of the team, but there are moments when “I” statements are more reassuring and showcase empathy to our colleagues’ situations.
5. Don’t wait until a challenge occurs.
It’s important to build empathy before any difficult workplace situation. This begins with taking a personal interest in your team. Discover your team’s interests, hobbies, and aspirations. That will give you better insight into what they need from you as a leader.
To amplify your team’s bond and enhance managing with empathy, download our free Yarn Weave template and discover connections that emerge between group members.
Douglas Ferguson | President, Voltage Control
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Good work is a product of perspective. Broader perspectives develop with distance. Within this context, distance most often comes in the form of listening and observing, then thinking before contributing.