Empathy at Work: Brené Brown Video Animation

The jury is in on emotional intelligence. It's not just a buzzword. Ninety-two percent of the company executives surveyed in our recent study reported that culture skills are as important as — if not more important than— technical aptitude. This echoes the findings of American social psychologist and Yale University President Peter Salovey, who suggests that more emotionally intelligent individuals receive greater pay increases and hold higher company rank over time. Building technical skills is only one piece of the career growth puzzle—the intangibles are what takes you from good to great. It's why we've designed our curriculum the way we have.[bctt tweet="Tech savvy is one piece of the puzzle—the intangibles are what takes you from good to great."] One of the pillars of emotional intelligence is empathy.  We love this animation of Brené Brown's talk on empathy. I'm sorry to admit that I have a habit of "silver-lining" things, as Brown describes—I think the optimist in me believes that offering "perspective" will be uplifting, but the truth is that perspective-taking is more powerful in fueling connection and strengthening relationships. This video is a great reminder of what it means to be empathetic.[bctt tweet="This Brené Brown animation shows how empathy fuels connection + sympathy drives disconnection."]

What do you think? How can empathy help us to be more effective teammates and leaders? How can we become more empathetic? We'd love to hear from you in the comments, below.