WASABE Blog

New developments on Collaborative Leadership

Is empathy manageable?

Empathy is inappropriate on the workplace. You don’t want a reputation for being “fluffy” or overly emotional, don’t you? I recently read The Art of Empathy written by Karla McLaren and she gave me a new way to look at empathy.

Some are struggling with developing empathy.” Why should they?” I still meet people who tries to convince me that emotions should stay at home and are not welcome on the workplace.

Others, overwhelmed by emotions, show so much empathy that they forget about themselves. “Can they canalise the excess?”

Karla McLaren makes an examination of the six essential aspects of empathy: emotional contagion, empathetic accuracy, emotional regulation, perspective taking, concern for others, and perceptive engagement.

Empathy is manageable. It is a core competence that can be developed, that builds bridges and in the end fuels collective intelligence and collaborative leadership.

Didier

Source: The Art of Empathy, Karla McLaren, Paperback, Sounds True, 2013, ISBN 1622030613