Page 46 - Demo

: What would you say empathy is NOT?
: I always say that empathy is not sympathy. There’s a lot more effort that goes into making sure that you’re giving the right empathic response and not just diving into sympathy. Sympathy can be very taxing on an individual if they’re always getting down into the same space as the person they are dealing with. They’re not going to be able to handle all the trauma that’s around them or the things that people need.
I think what empathy does is very healthy. It allows you to feel what the other person is feeling and respond back to them. Then, both of you know that you’re on the same page versus getting into that same trough that might come from sympathy.
: When empathy is aimed at employees in the workplace, whether that’s a physical/in-person workplace or a virtual one, what do you think it does for those who receive it and what do you think it does for those who are giving it?
: I think there are two perspectives. In a work world, it’s very easy just to deal with the tangible output from an employee: their performance, their metrics, what they’re doing. That’s very objective, but as long as you’re looking at the subjective, which is the emotional side of their life, you’re showing that you care about them in a complete way: both emotionally and about the tangible things they’re doing for the company. If you leave that whole emotional piece out, you’re only giving them half the message.
I think everyone already knew that leaders or those who run a company need that piece of the puzzle, but what happened with the pandemic has just magnified that need. You can’t just leave that emotional piece of a person’s life out of what they give you in a work setting. So, we’re all on kind of high alert that we have to do it today, and if there’s anything serendipitous that can come out
of us all going remote and dealing with a global pandemic, I think it’ll bring that part of the work environment out more in the open.
: Can you share any examples of empathy that has been shown to you in recent months, whether by an individual or your organization?
: The role that I have here as the community engagement person for The Hartford has been completely turned on its head, and I’m dealing with a lot of nonprofits that we engage with in the community. Their response back to me as I check in on them has been completely empathic. They can’t believe that I’m taking the time out to check on them. It’s been really encouraging to hear their response that it means so much to them that I’m reaching out right now. Many of those organizations have a lot of volunteering going on, and as we figure out different ways to help them during this holiday season, the outpouring of appreciation and knowing that we care about them has just really lifted me in that role.
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