How honed are your antennae?

Empathy, or the ability to understand and feel what others experience, is an essential quality to win our ever changing future. For those of us with super sensitive antennae, cues from others as to their emotional state, are readily buzzing, but this is not a given for all.

Now in our increasingly predominant digital communications, how are we able to harness our empathy, in order to better read our colleagues cues?

‘Despite the efficacy of email interactions, we need to value personal connections and the emotional information they give us. By intentionally connecting with people—in person, over the phone, or on a video call­—for discussions where emotion is at play , we can minimize miscommunication and foster productive and meaningful relationships.’ (source -kornferry.com/insights).

However those of us not trained in detection and decoding, can constantly miss cues, and even misjudge behavioural signs of distress or disengagement. Emotionally-aware leaders are able to build engagement with their team . In turn, these employees are more committed to the organization, deliver better results, please customers and drive value, according to a report by the Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology. Fail to build engagement, and employee retention and business results will suffer.

While being emotionally aware can be pivotal to a company’s strategy, it can be tricky to execute. Decoding emotion takes an understanding of different communications and personality styles.Many people are experts at hiding their emotional states. While this skill may help them feel more in control, it can have a toxic effect on the organization, which is why it’s so important to be sensitive to non-verbal and verbal emotional cues. If you are aware of your emotional state, you are living in the now, connected to your feelings and less likely to let them influence perceptions of others. You’ll be open to the emotional states of your employees and able to understand where they are performing well and where they’re experiencing difficulty.

So  – Get in touch with your emotions, and identify the emotional cues you might be missing.