Empathy allows us to feel safe with our failures because we won't simply be blamed for them. It encourages leaders to understand the root cause behind poor performance. Being empathetic allows leaders to help struggling employees improve and excel. When a leader takes the time to understand a member of their team, they build trust and strengthen the relationship. This leaves the employee feeling that the leader understands their world. The end result is greater co-operation from the employee, therefore greater productivity. Leaders who DONT take the time to develop empathy generally end up with a team who are resentful. Not a good outcome for anyone. I worked for a company where the CEO not only lacked empathy but went out of his way to put down his staff in front of each other and behind their back. People left the business, took every sick day available, arrived late, left early, stole stationery from the cupboard and spent time on personal phone calls instead of doing the work. Not once did he check in with his team to find out how things were going. When clients left to take their business to competitors, he called them idiots. Profits fell. The CEO complained about why he had to do everything and blamed employees for reduced profit in the business. He had no idea what it was like to enter the world of the client or the employee. He was a lone wolf. A smart man for sure. Highly educated, a good networker and lacking in the key leadership skill of empathy.

If you wish to know the mind of a man, listen to his words. – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Five things that let you know your leader has empathy:

1. Leaders who have empathy listen. They are not distracted by their computer or smart phone. They do not pick up the phone to speak to someone else while they are with you. They spend more time listening than talking. They seek to understand.
2. They monitor your body language and listen for what is not being said. They know how to create a safe environment for you to speak up.
3. They take a back seat and put the team first. The language they use 'we' not 'I'.
4. They seek to understand what drives their team and how that aligns with the business vision.
5. They have an open door policy, they welcome feedback and use it to effect change in the business.

Over the years I have been involved in several business collaborations. One is memorable for the lack of empathy the leader showed with clients, collaborating partners, staff and suppliers. He consistently burned relationships by charming people, getting the sale and then failing to fulfill on agreed arrangements with collaborators. One by one he burned the lot, wondering why he was not gaining traction in his business. His behaviour toward me at the time of my fathers death told me all I needed to know to exit stage left. Death is a great leveller. When a person fails to show empathy during the grief process, it's a fair indication of rough times ahead. Simply put, when the leader in a business practices the skill of empathy, the team will do whatever it takes to get the job done. And the opposite will occur where empathy is absent!