Appropriately batting clean-up in the C.A.R.E. line up is empathy. Empathy is the bond. The bond between us that comes from understanding how someone is feeling or where they are coming from. Empathy conveys that we have been heard and that we matter to the other person.
The moment you don’t think this doesn’t come before the process, consider a conversation that lacks one participant’s empathy for another who shares troubling news about a mutual acquaintance. The person observing the other’s apparent lack of concern will not go unnoticed. Having relationships means we need to interact and to interact without empathy can lead to friction which disrupts the relationship or keeps a relationship from forming.
As I mentioned before, this is not all negative either. Consider that empathy is shown when we share someone’s excitement over an accomplishment or amazement of a serendipitous moment (see Attitude from my previous post). When we think of caring about someone else, empathy plays a pretty big role in how that is shown.
This is all a part of the Authentic Networking System. Learn more about Authentic Networking at the Professional Networking Workshop on Nov 6th. If you are attending a networking event in the next week, these workshops provide networking practice, information, and resources. Learn and reinforce concepts, ideas, and processes that make networking more comfortable and effective. Workshop Info
If you missed earlier posts, or just want to see the entire Authentic Networking System all laid out, start to finish, download the printable PDF HERE.
