Empathy at Work Developing Skills to Understand Other People

Abstract

Empathy is like a universal solvent. Any problem immersed in empathy becomes soluble.– Simon Baron-Cohen, British clinical psychologist, and professor of developmental psychopathology, University of Cambridge.

Understanding other people’s emotions is a key skill in the workplace.

It can enable us to resolve conflicts, to build more productive teams, and to improve our relationships with co-workers, clients and customers.

This article explores what it really means to show empathy. It looks at how a few simple actions can help us to create stronger connections, to build a culture of honesty and openness, and to make a real difference to the emotional well-being, and productivity, of our colleagues.