Are You Going Soft or Getting Smarter?

Let’s start with a definition: empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. Some business leaders worry that feeling empathy may distract them or make them weak. It threatens to take their eyes off what matters most: growth and profitability.

Don’t worry too much about feelings, they say. Just get it done.

Let’s push back on that. How do you get stuff done?

In general, it’s a good rule of thumb to start with empathy.

Empathize with your customers, for example, and you can more easily identify what they truly value. The most talented sales professionals do this incredibly well, and they often bring in new pieces of business that a less empathetic professional might never have even guessed the customer needed.

If you are entering into a negotiation or attempting to get stakeholders to contribute to a contentious initiative, the same holds true. Start with empathy.

The greater your ability to listen to a person and demonstrate that, “I hear you,” the more likely they are to keep sharing with you. This creates a virtuous feedback loop that continually deepens your understanding of what your customers, investors, partners and employees want and need.

And that helps you get what you want.

Empathy can also diffuse a tense situation and transform it into a positive one. Let’s say your company has really dropped the ball with one of your largest accounts. Start a subsequent conversation with an empathetic opening such as, “I know we really messed up, and cost you time and money you couldn’t afford to lose. I’m here to listen to your perspective, to say how sorry we are, and to make things right.”

With such an opening, you are much more likely to rebuild the relationship.

Used properly, empathy is a highly profitable business strategy.

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I help successful leaders and their teams agree on what needs to change and how to make it happen. I am the author of Fearless Growth and The Agility Advantage. 

For more strategies, videos and free materials, please visit www.setili.com. If you are curious, here are a few quick examples of the work we do. You might also enjoy my Fearless Growth Podcast.