Empathic leadership required to navigate the next phase of the pandemic
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How are you feeling, anxious all the time, a little frayed around the edges?
With warnings of a ‘mental health pandemic’ sitting in wait ahead, it’s vital that we dive into the reality of Covid-19’s impact; not only in a year of lockdowns, social distancing, and anxiety but further into the future, when the risk of coronavirus is low and lockdowns are a distant memory. How serious is the effect of the past year on our mental health? Will the end of lockdown fix it with the jab of a vaccine needle? And what do we need to do to heal what could be the next major health crisis?
While I’m an optimist, I’m also a realist and believe that we should reconsider whether a permanent move to remote work is such a good idea. It risks taking us from the coronavirus pandemic to a loneliness pandemic, with potentially terrible costs.
Every responsible senior business leader wants to know what changes employees want in the post-COVID era. The truth is, only your employees can tell you how they have changed as a result of the pandemic and why.
Many of the traits that have always been important for managers — empathy, clarity, authenticity, and agility — are even more crucial during this time of uncertainty and upheaval. Leaders have been challenged to maintain connection and a sense of belonging within their teams even when they cannot be in the same room together.
True to this Zoom fever form I recently caught up with a globally renowned expert on empathic leadership. She the host of the ‘Empathy for Breakfast’ show in Dubai, as well as the ‘Secrets of The Gap’ podcast, Mimi Nicklin, who recently wrote a book about empathy titled Softening the Edge
With warnings of a ‘mental health pandemic’ sitting in wait ahead, it’s vital that we dive into the reality of Covid-19’s impact; not only in a year of lockdowns, social distancing, and anxiety but further into the future, when the risk of coronavirus is low and lockdowns are a distant memory. How serious is the effect of the past year on our mental health? Will the end of lockdown fix it with the jab of a vaccine needle? And what do we need to do to heal what could be the next major health crisis?
While I’m an optimist, I’m also a realist and believe that we should reconsider whether a permanent move to remote work is such a good idea. It risks taking us from the coronavirus pandemic to a loneliness pandemic, with potentially terrible costs.
Every responsible senior business leader wants to know what changes employees want in the post-COVID era. The truth is, only your employees can tell you how they have changed as a result of the pandemic and why.
Many of the traits that have always been important for managers — empathy, clarity, authenticity, and agility — are even more crucial during this time of uncertainty and upheaval. Leaders have been challenged to maintain connection and a sense of belonging within their teams even when they cannot be in the same room together.
True to this Zoom fever form I recently caught up with a globally renowned expert on empathic leadership. She the host of the ‘Empathy for Breakfast’ show in Dubai, as well as the ‘Secrets of The Gap’ podcast, Mimi Nicklin, who recently wrote a book about empathy titled Softening the Edge