5 Ways To Lead With Empathy

Empathy sounds like one of those touchy-feely words. It’s what those woo-woo leaders do. But it’s not.

Leading with empathy is something every leader should do. It not only endears you to your employees but it forms stronger connections between you, employees, suppliers, and more.

Why wouldn’t you want to lead with empathy?

What Is Empathy?

Some of us may have the wrong idea of empathy. We don’t understand what empathy is or how to use empathy. Let’s get clear about what empathy is.

According to the dictions, empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. That means you, as a leader, can connect with your people on an emotional level. You can share in another person’s grief, stress, anguish, frustration, and more without letting it overcome you. 

Quotes And Leadership Lessons From Migration

My latest book, Reel Leadership, is now available on Amazon. If you love movies and leadership, you will love this book.

Migration is the latest film from Universal Pictures and Illumination (you know, the people who brought us Minions and Despicable Me). The film tells the story of a family of mallards with an overprotective father, Mack (Kumail Nanjiani). He’s been mentally conditioned to see the worst outcome and has a victim mindset.

Because of this, his family has never left their New England pond. 

4 animated ducks standing on a sidewalk. Pigeon feathers are floating in the air.

It’s a story of growth, missteps, and family bonding. It’s also a story of leadership growth. Mack and his family grow throughout the movie. Each move they make toward Jamaica leads them on a new adventure with a new chance to grow.

Sounds a lot like leadership, right? Buckle in! We’re migrating to Reel Leadership land here. Let’s take a look at the leadership lessons in Migration.

The Power Of Active Listening In Leadership

There’s an age-old saying that people don’t care what you know until they know how much you care. This quote has been attributed to Theodore Roosevelt. Regardless of whether or not Roosevelt actually said this or not, it’s an important aspect of leadership.

Your people want to know you care. One of the ways you can show this is through listening… active listening. 

Carl Rogers and Richard Farson introduced the idea of active listening in 1957. According to Duke University, active listening is listening with the intent to really understand how the person is feeling and be able to put yourself in their shoes to empathize with them

That’s a lot to take in. 

To be a great active listener, you have to:

  • Listen
  • Have intent
  • Be willing to understand the other person
  • Put yourself in their shoes

Quotes And Leadership Lessons From The Boys In The Boat

A Reel Leadership Article

My latest book, Reel Leadership, is now available on Amazon. If you love movies and leadership, you will love this book.

In 1936, the University of Washington’s Junior Varsity crew team did something amazing. The crew team consisted of Don Hume (Jack Mulhern), Joe Rantz (Callum Turner), George “Shorty” Hunt Bruce Herbelin-Earle), Jim McMillin Wil Coban), John ‘Johnny’ White (Tom Varey), Gordy Adam (Joel Phillimore), Charles ‘Chuck’ Day (Thomas Elms), Roger Morris (Sam Strike), cox Bob ‘Bobby’ Moch (Luke Slattery). They beat varsity teams and then went to the Olympics. From there, they won the Olympic games and took home gold medals for the USA.

These boys, not men, competed in one of the most grueling sports imaginable. Most people don’t even know what crewing is. I only knew what crew was because of the ethical clothing boutique my wife shops at and does a side hustle for. 

The University of Washington Junior Varsity crew team in their boat

Quotes And Leadership Lessons From The Marvels

My latest book, Reel Leadership, is now available on Amazon. If you love movies and leadership, you will love this book.

Many people have said the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been in decline since the amazing Avengers: Endgame movie. While there haven’t been as many great movies since that film, Marvel still has had some winners. 

Having previously seen Captain Marvel and not being a fan, I wasn’t too excited about their latest film, The Marvels. The Marvels continues the story of Carol Danvers (Brie Larson), Monica Rambeau/Photon (Yeyonah Parris), and Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel (Iman Vellani). The trio all have light-based powers that get entangled thanks to a new threat.

For those of you who haven’t watched Captain Marvel or the Ms. Marvel Disney Plus series, you may come away a little lost. This movie picks up after both of these, and they are crucial to understanding what is happening. However, I think you can enjoy this movie even without the backstory from those two entries.