Leading with the Empathy StrengthsFinder Talent

Empathy StrengthsFinder TL;DR

The Empathy StrengthsFinder talent means you have a raised awareness of the emotions of others and allows you to walk in another’s shoes.

When you lead from this strength, you can help others voice their emotions, allowing them to feel seen and understood.

Going first creates safety for others to enter into vulnerability.

If you’re already familiar with StrengthsFinder, you can skip over the next section.

How do you lead well with Empathy in your StrengthsFinder top 5?

So you’ve taken the StrengthsFinder assessment, received your results and found empathy in the list. Now you’re wondering how to grow or leverage this strength in your leadership. 

I know the relief of having someone name my emotions better than I can. I've worked hard to empower those on my teams with the strength of empathy.

These are four strategies I’ve seen empathetic leaders use to create a better sense of we on the team.

1. Refine your emotional language.
2. Look for the right moment to name feelings.
3. Ask questions that lead others to empathic insight.
4. Recharge your own batteries.

Refine your emotional language

You may already have a robust emotional vocabulary but continue to expand it. There’s a difference between frustrated and bitter, and you can help others use that nuance as they identify and name their emotions. 

You have a raised awareness of the emotions of others, allowing you to walk in their shoes.

When you can listen to someone and name their experience, they will feel seen and understood. There is great kindness that comes from an empathetic posture. It also improves your ability to lead as you gain a better understanding of your team.

Articulating what others are experiencing is incredibly powerful in a team setting, but there’s an art in knowing when and how to do it.

Look for the right moment to name feelings.

It’s not uncommon for others to be unaware of their own feelings and the feelings of others. Naming what one person is feeling can create empathy from the whole team. But it can also make that person feel exposed.

The moment informs how it's received. Will they feel safe? 

Articulating what others are experiencing is incredibly powerful in a team setting, but there’s an art in knowing when and how to do it

A helpful strategy can be to own the emotions for the team. If you observe multiple team members feeling anxious, you could say something like, “With our deadline coming up quickly, it’s natural for me to get tunnel vision and feel anxious, is anyone else feelling that?” Going first creates safety for others to enter into vulnerability.

Ask questions that lead others to empathic insight.

Understanding doesn't require agreement. You can disagree with someone's choices but understand why they made them. This posture often requires a high level of empathy or maturity. 

You can help others voice their emotions, allowing them to feel seen and understood.

By asking questions, you can facilitate your team toward greater empathy by realizing there are likely understandable reasons for another person’s behavior. 

Recharge your own batteries

It's easy to get drained when you’re more aware of what everyone is experiencing. And it’s natural to overlook the need to practice empathy for yourself. 

Take time to reflect and what you’re experiencing and feeling. Share your observation with someone else, or write it down. 

As you learn to lead using your empathy strength, you can help others bring their experiences from felt to named and known.

By helping others voice their emotions, you can help prevent them from checking out because they're misunderstood. In the end, you’ll begin to create a better sense of we on your team.

Leaders with the empathy strength can struggle with an antipattern of being ruled by others’ emotions. Learning the strengths antipatterns will allow you to continue growing as a healthy, intentional leader. 

You are on an extraordinary journey to living and leading from your strengths. You can explore the list below to learn about the rest of your top 5 strengths.