Simply put, empathy is the ability to put oneself in another's shoes, to recognize and consider their emotions and needs.

Defining the term

What empathy is

Empathy is the ability to understand and react to another person's feelings, emotions, or experiences.

Empathy goes beyond sympathy to include the ability to consider and help others with compassion and empathy.

Empathy at work

Respect over rules

In the workplace, empathy will display a deep respect for co-workers and demonstrate that you care rather than simply following rules and regulations. Empathic leadership will make everyone feel like they're part of a team, boosting efficiency, morale, and loyalty.

The essentials

Empathy requires three things

Empathetic people pay close attention to what you're doing, keeping their full attention on the person in front of them and not being easily distracted. They spend more time listening than communicating and they want to learn the problems that others are experiencing, all of which contributes to others around them feeling understood and remembered.

The challenge

Empathy takes work

• Demonstrating empathy takes time and effort to show awareness and 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.

The takeaway

As leaders, our job is simple: deal with our team sympathetically and watch them build a successful and influential company.