Our work environments and demographics continue to evolve. We have an aging workforce and the most generations we have ever had in the workforce. We have increased diversity, distributed and hybrid workforces, automation, and AI. This requires our leaders to show up differently.

In addition, studies show people are experiencing multiple kinds of stress, and studies show it is affected by the pandemic and the ways our lives and our work have been turned upside down. Recent burnout studies are showing that almost half of our employees are burned out (source), which leads to mental and physical health concerns. The pressure is on leaders to learn key soft skills to deal with employee burnout. Empathy and adaptability are two of the most critical skills for leaders to address these needs.

Why are adaptability and empathy essential skills for today’s leaders?

It isn’t new that adaptability is a critical skill for leaders. Our world is constantly changing; we have to assess new situations, make intelligent decisions, and implement them effectively. It is challenging for organizations to hire for and build adaptability in their leaders. It’s imperative that the leaders of today learn to live in ambiguous environments.

Adaptable leaders help to support and understand diverse and inclusive environments. As mentioned above, this is paramount in today’s organizations.

Adaptable leaders are more resilient. Resilient people can bounce back after adversity. We’re able to recover and learn from our mistakes. As leaders, we must be flexible, open, adaptable in our thinking and in our general openness in the lives of the people around us.

“Empathetic people are superb at recognizing and meeting the needs of clients, customers, or subordinates. They seem approachable, wanting to hear what people have to say. They listen carefully, picking up on what people are truly concerned about, and respond on the mark,”

Daniel Goleman, Primal Leadership.

Daniel Goleman also says there is no correlation between IQ and empathy. Something to really think about as you are building your job descriptions and thinking about Emotional Quotient versus Intelligence Quotient. Empathy is the key factor of emotional intelligence. Lastly, emotional intelligence has a 58% influence on job performance and 90% of top performers at work have high emotional intelligence (EQ) (source).

Empathy is the foundation to building psychological safety in teams. The truth is that many leaders do not realize the impact that their words have on people’s willingness to speak up or put forward their ideas for fear of humiliation. This is especially true on engineering teams. Also, Leaders with empathy perform over 40% higher in employee engagement, decision-making, and coaching. (source)

5 Essential Leader Strategies for Building Adaptability and Empathy

1. Let go of your attachments – Learn to practice acceptance. (Attachments want things to stay the same. Acceptance allows you to let go). Practice mindfulness or meditation. (This allows you to stay in the moment versus worrying about the future or the past)
2. Learn from different people and different ideas – Use group brainstorming to gain perspectives. (Your idea is not the only idea)
3. Reframe your thoughts – When faced with unexpected situations that initially inspire gloom, train yourself to reinterpret the situation. Focus on turning the challenge into a gift (What can you learn from this challenge?)
4. Embrace challenges and embrace mistakes – Challenges can be gifts. Mistakes are opportunities to learn and improve.
5. Be okay with pivots – Pivots are necessary to remain competitive. While they can be frustrating, they are also required in a VUCA world (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity)

Empathy

1. Put yourself in their shoes – try to understand their situation and how it must have felt if you were them.
2. Be curious – Move from Boss to Coach. Ask open-ended questions like “How did you feel?” and “How can I help?”
3. Practice Active Listening – Maintain eye contact, listen non-judgmentally, don’t jump in to offer solutions or fixes, stay focused on the rest of this process.
4. Keep the focus on them – Maintain eye contact. Do not switch the focus too quickly to work. Do not jump in to fixing or telling a story about yourself (this is sympathy).
5. Validate their feelings by using validating statements – You don’t have to agree with them to offer validation. “Sounds like you are worried,” “I can see how hard you are working,” “Wow, that must have made you so angry,” “That must have been so hard for you.”

Lastly, be clear about the difference between “sympathy” and “empathy.” Brené Brown describes sympathy as a way to stay out of touch with our own emotions and make our connections transactional.

Merriam-Webster defines sympathy as “the feeling that you care about and are sorry about someone else’s trouble, grief, misfortune, etc.” They may share “helpful” advice, which could make the person struggling feel unheard and unsupported.

Merriam-Webster defines Empathy as “the feeling that you understand and share another person’s experiences and emotions” or “the ability to share someone else’s feelings.” It is looking at things from another person’s perspective and attempting to understand why they feel the way they do.

Here’s a short Brené Brown video on empathy versus sympathy. She says that “empathy fuels connection and sympathy drives disconnection.”

If you are looking to hire new leaders, here are some of my favorite behavioral-based interview questions that you can add to your interview process to assess adaptability and empathy:

Adaptability:

• Share an experience when you had to work with a group of diverse individuals with different working styles or backgrounds? How did you adapt your leadership approach to effectively collaborate and achieve team goals Situation/Action/Result
• How do you handle feedback and criticism? Give me an example of how you’ve used feedback to adapt your approach or improve your performance as a manager. Why/Effect/Action
• Describe a time when you faced resistance from your team regarding a change or new initiative. How did you address their concerns and motivate them to embrace the change? Situation/Change/Reaction/Result

Empathy:

• How do you approach understanding the needs and concerns of your team members? Can you provide an example of a situation where you actively listened and responded empathetically? Situation/Result
• How do you handle conflicts within your team? Can you describe a time when you used empathy to resolve a difficult situation? Situation/Result
• What strategies do you employ to create a psychologically safe, positive, and inclusive work environment where everyone feels valued and supported? Situations/Results

Building empathetic and adaptable leaders is vital for organizations in today’s ever-changing work environments. The shifting demographics, increased diversity, and the influence of automation and AI demand leaders who can show up differently. Empathy and adaptability are crucial skills for addressing these needs. Adaptable leaders are resilient, able to bounce back from adversity and learn from mistakes. By prioritizing empathy and adaptability in the hiring process and employing strategies such as letting go of attachments, reframing thoughts, and active listening, organizations can cultivate empathetic and adaptable leaders who foster inclusive and engaged environments and drive success.