FE: Empathy as a Tool
Date Published: 11/14/2019
Empathy is a tool for building people into groups, for allowing us to function as more than self-obsessed individuals. ~Neil Gaiman
What does empathy mean today?
I love the quote above, citing empathy as a tool. This week I wish to put empathy in practice as a device to help us understand another person's thoughts, feelings, and condition from his or her point of view, rather than from one's own. Empathy facilitates pro-social or helping behaviors that come from within, rather than being forced, so that people behave in a more compassionate manner.
There may be individual differences in empathy based on genetic differences, research suggests it is possible to boost the capacity for empathetic understanding. Empathy has been shown to have an influence on everything from customer loyalty, to innovation, to partnerships and profits. When embraced with genuine intent and not simply as a topcoat, empathy can offer your brand countless benefits, from being a good global citizen, to authentic connections, and doing the right thing for people!
When you’re ready to project a more authentic brand promise and attract the best talent, it’s clear that empathy-washing is no substitute for hard/smart work of building an empathetic brand from the inside out. Voila, a spotlight on identifying traits of empathetic brands and wisdom on creating an authentic culture of empathy that sticks.
Empathy spurs innovation: When you understand your customers, you can keep pace with changing needs and desires. Internal studies at Google found that their most innovative and profitable ideas came from teams leading with soft skills, such as empathy.
Empathy aligns you with customer wants and needs: The more in tune you are with your customers, the faster you can deliver best-fit products or services before your competitors catch on. In order to know what customers desire, you must see things from their perspective. Building an ideal customer profile will help you know what their life is like. Steve Jobs, for instance, focused on understanding a customer so well that Apple’s product designers knew what the customer wanted before they did.
Read on: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/340808
We know The Wishwall brand is authentic, so we’re following up, and sharing updates on these stories in action.
Great to see this wish granted!
https://thewishwallfoundation.org/desideri/hope-boxes-a-wish-granted-the-wishwall
By request, here are more details, action shots and BTS photos from our Backyard Concert with Teen Cancer America (TCA) that raised $4 million. Thank you to everyone who is planning a donation for giving Tuesday to TCA and/or The Wishwall! https://teencanceramerica.org/campaigns/events/backyard-concert-2019
We also mark this Stan Lee milestone after his passing. ICYMI:
https://thewishwallfoundation.org/desideri/future-entrepreneurs-heroes-fighting-hate
Extra shout out and gratitude to my Shine Through the Noise readers who wrote to me about their inspiration after reading my series! I’m meeting with potential sponsors for a Shine Through seminar and will keep you posted.
Thanks for reading and we welcome your comments below.
Akasha Lin
Akasha Garnier for #TheWishwall
Author, Brand Expert, Filmmaker
http://www.akashagarnier.com
#ShineThroughtheNoise
Read more from Future Entrepreneurs:
https://thewishwallfoundation.org/future-entrepreneurs
Additional empathy background from https://www.psychologytoday.com.
What does empathy mean today?
I love the quote above, citing empathy as a tool. This week I wish to put empathy in practice as a device to help us understand another person's thoughts, feelings, and condition from his or her point of view, rather than from one's own. Empathy facilitates pro-social or helping behaviors that come from within, rather than being forced, so that people behave in a more compassionate manner.
There may be individual differences in empathy based on genetic differences, research suggests it is possible to boost the capacity for empathetic understanding. Empathy has been shown to have an influence on everything from customer loyalty, to innovation, to partnerships and profits. When embraced with genuine intent and not simply as a topcoat, empathy can offer your brand countless benefits, from being a good global citizen, to authentic connections, and doing the right thing for people!
When you’re ready to project a more authentic brand promise and attract the best talent, it’s clear that empathy-washing is no substitute for hard/smart work of building an empathetic brand from the inside out. Voila, a spotlight on identifying traits of empathetic brands and wisdom on creating an authentic culture of empathy that sticks.
Empathy spurs innovation: When you understand your customers, you can keep pace with changing needs and desires. Internal studies at Google found that their most innovative and profitable ideas came from teams leading with soft skills, such as empathy.
Empathy aligns you with customer wants and needs: The more in tune you are with your customers, the faster you can deliver best-fit products or services before your competitors catch on. In order to know what customers desire, you must see things from their perspective. Building an ideal customer profile will help you know what their life is like. Steve Jobs, for instance, focused on understanding a customer so well that Apple’s product designers knew what the customer wanted before they did.
Read on: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/340808
We know The Wishwall brand is authentic, so we’re following up, and sharing updates on these stories in action.
Great to see this wish granted!
https://thewishwallfoundation.org/desideri/hope-boxes-a-wish-granted-the-wishwall
By request, here are more details, action shots and BTS photos from our Backyard Concert with Teen Cancer America (TCA) that raised $4 million. Thank you to everyone who is planning a donation for giving Tuesday to TCA and/or The Wishwall! https://teencanceramerica.org/campaigns/events/backyard-concert-2019
We also mark this Stan Lee milestone after his passing. ICYMI:
https://thewishwallfoundation.org/desideri/future-entrepreneurs-heroes-fighting-hate
Extra shout out and gratitude to my Shine Through the Noise readers who wrote to me about their inspiration after reading my series! I’m meeting with potential sponsors for a Shine Through seminar and will keep you posted.
Thanks for reading and we welcome your comments below.
Akasha Lin
Akasha Garnier for #TheWishwall
Author, Brand Expert, Filmmaker
http://www.akashagarnier.com
#ShineThroughtheNoise
Read more from Future Entrepreneurs:
https://thewishwallfoundation.org/future-entrepreneurs
Additional empathy background from https://www.psychologytoday.com.
