Bringing Empathy Back to School

Many colleges and universities are starting back up next week… after a stressful (Covid) summer break, it’s a challenge to return to class with the level of empathy needed to interact, collaborate and problem solve with teachers, classmates, and professors.

Showing your empathy can be the strongest thing you can do for others right now. Empathy is understanding or feeling what another person is feeling. Empathy is actually putting yourself into someone else’s shoes.

And it’s a big change for many people, especially in the business world. Showing emotions was not often rewarded – making decisions logically without emotion was a way to get ahead. Businesses drove to make decisions based on financial return, expected market share, and increased visibility. 

In today’s world, much of that thinking has been turned on its head. As a leader, finding your empathy, and showing those around you that you care can make all the difference in everyone’s lives.

In a college setting, empathy is especially important. As students are leaving home, sometimes for the first time, they are already in a heightened emotional state. Add that to learning new ways of interacting with fellow students, new responsibilities for college-level academia, and living away from home, and you have a deep need for understanding and empathy.

What are you doing differently to help people know you care?

#Empathy #BackToSchool #Endostrategy #GrumpyLemon