Leadership
Why Empathy and Resilience Are Your Most Important Leadership Skills
Especially in times of change
I’ve been lucky enough in my life to have managed lots of different teams across vastly different sectors. From search and rescue operations to corporate management, the situations, locations, and challenges have all been unique. But there’s always been one common denominator. The people.
Arguably, it’s the people that can be the most challenging aspect of being a leader. Not because they’re difficult, but because they’re all so different. Needs, circumstances, and ambitions, all play a part in the teams we lead. No two people are the same which means there is no “one answer fits all” when it comes to managing people. And without people, what are we leading?
That’s why resilience and empathy are so vital to your quiver of leadership skills. It’s about getting the most out of your people even in the most challenging circumstances while making them feel great about it.
Resilience
Resilience isn’t only about enduring the challenges you’ll inevitability face, but having the courage to learn from these challenges and grow as a leader. This has always been the case. It’s not a new concept. Just because we’re facing a worldwide crisis doesn’t make our situation unique. The world has faced plenty of unexpected and tumultuous crises in the last few decades — world war, terrorism, famine, and recessions to name a few.
How we as leaders cope with these unexpected situations is what’s important.
Resilience is also about adjusting your mindset when things go wrong. Failures should be seen as temporary and not permanent. A way forward, rather than a setback. By taking this approach, you’re able to have a growth mindset and continue moving forward.
As Rocky Balboa said:
“ It’s not about how hard you hit, but about how hard you can GET hit and still keep moving forward. How much you can take and still move forward. That’s how winning’s done.”
Resilience allows leaders to be clear in times of uncertainty. If the poison of ambiguity seeps into your business it can be pretty destructive. Before you know it, nobody knows what to do and people are looking at each other in confusion and wondering where to go. Your teams inevitably end up down a dark road of confusion and senseless tasks which can result in the demise of the business. Resilient leaders will naturally be less ambiguous and therefore more decisive in times of trouble.
Uncertainty is going to be inevitable, especially in times of significant change. If you’re unable to deal with uncertainty, you’re likely to lack motivation and also likely to feel overwhelmed when times get tough. Resilient leaders can adapt to change when necessary— which is essential to sustainability. Companies who can be decisive in times of crisis have a better chance of survival.
Empathy
Being empathetic is about recognizing the feelings of others and how they see the world. It’s no surprise that most militaries these days include empathy as a fundamental skill development in their leadership programs.
I learned the art of empathy early in my clinical career. I had to show huge amounts of it to my patients when I cared for them. It came naturally to me. For a lot of people though, empathy isn’t second nature.
I found it quite easy to apply empathy in the clinical situation, but found it much harder when I was dealing with people in the corporate setting. It’s a different kind of empathy, but the principles are the same.
Trying to understand another person’s perspective or understand their needs can be particularly hard to do. It’s the source of most arguments or disagreements, both personally and professionally. We want to be right, and as humans, we have a need to influence others.
For example, if I watch a movie I think is really good, I want other people to share in my dopamine rush. So I recommend the movie, even offer to watch it again, just to be part of the pleasure that person is going to feel when they experience what I experienced. But when they don’t like the film, I wonder what’s wrong with them; I might say they have no taste, or they don’t know what they’re talking about, etc. The thing is though, if I took the time to understand that person and the fact that that genre of movie is not something they enjoy, I can accept our differences and just allow myself to enjoy the movie for what it is.
My point is, that empathy is about accepting that different people will see the same situation in their own unique way. It’s about caring enough about the impact your words or actions might have on people. That’s what makes all the difference.
So when it comes to leadership, empathy is the foundation that allows you to build stronger teams. This is done through an understanding of your teams and your customers. Empathy helps you listen better and respond accordingly. One of your team might have a good idea, which is worth listening to. If it’s not going to work, encourage them to keep producing more. They’ll eventually come up with something great if they’re empowered to do so. After all, we should be leading to build leaders, not leading to build followers.
With this approach, you inevitably build staff loyalty and retain essential and valuable talent through increased trust and engagement. Teams collaborate better, work environments are healthier, and creativity is enhanced.
Empathy has many other advantages. It’s not only key to the people you lead but is essential to your customer base. When you empathize with your customers, you understand their needs better. This leads to better solutions for them and enhanced levels of engagement.
Although resilience and empathy may be tough to master, they make you a much more dynamic leader — able to take on a rapidly changing world. They’re the cornerstone of what leadership should really look like. Not what we think it should like and certainly not what it’s looked like in the past. With empathy for our colleagues, families, and even those we don’t know, we can produce the leaders of tomorrow and know we’ve made some difference in the world.
