Empathy? In Denmark they are learning it in school
Denmark is one of the happiest countries in the world. This is according to the UN’s World Happiness Report, an important survey that since 2012 classifies the happiness of 155 countries in the world, and that for seven years has placed Denmark among the top three happiest countries on a global level. The fact that teaching empathy has been mandatory since 1993 in schools in Denmark is a factor that contributes to the…
How an empathic culture gets built
Workplace Culture is built in everyday moments and tested during the difficult moments. Difficult moments test us at work too and can be determining factors on how we are perceived at doing our jobs. If your job is a field goal kicker and you miss a game winning field goal during playoffs, people are going to judge. Difficult moments also challenge our workplace culture. Culture is tested when someone messes…
Pushed off the entrepreneurial cliff
Angela Nino found her dream job in the midst of a toxic work environment, was pushed off the entrepreneurial cliff, and with the help of Improv built her own company. Click below to watch the video.
Optimizing Empathy: Being empathic doesn’t require giving someone advice to solve their problem.
I was sitting on my therapist’s couch, gazing through the partially opened blinds of his office’s floor to ceiling window, while he talked me through a simple gym couple scenario. “Have you ever seen that couple at the gym, where the guy is ridiculing his girlfriend about how her stomach isn’t flat enough or her butt is too small, and she works that much harder during their workout trying to…
True Life: Addicted to Novelty
“Hello, everyone. My name is Jim, and I’m a novelty addict.” [Everyone: “Hi, Jim.”] “It’s been 12 hours since I last ‘liked’ and ‘retweeted’ multiple articles on Twitter and LinkedIn without reading them or doing anything with the knowledge I gained. But it’s time I admit I need help in order to make a change and break this toxic cycle. These constant hits of novelty are only holding me back.”…
“Where you from” as a micro aggression in the workplace
As huge corporations like General Motors manage the backlash regarding certain leadership that did little to combat a culture of overt racism against employees of color, we’re reminded that while most people today don’t condone racist or other discriminatory behavior, it does exist. It’s easy to point fingers and proclaim that your company isn’t like that, but it’s the more subtle forms of discrimination today that often do the most to divide an office. As leaders within…
5 Ways to Increase Emotional Intelligence in the Workplace
Over the last decade, more companies are giving attention to the emotional intelligence of their employees. Backed by thousands of studies, high emotional intelligence has been shown to improve job performance, leadership skills, employee interactions, relationships, mental and physical health, and happiness in employees. Most companies have employees that fall all over the emotional intelligence spectrum. How can a company work to bring everyone to a place of higher emotional…