Compassion Makes You Stronger
“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.”
Dalai Lama
Compassion can build a thriving workplace because compassion is outwardly directed and encourages less preoccupation with self centeredness. Practicing compassion with your co-workers contributes to personal, team and organizational success. When people feel cared for, they are able to care for others, which instills a positive environment where people are encouraged to be creative and supported.
Just recently, here at ManifestSEO, we had a proposal deadline that had to be done in twenty four hours. In the middle of the proposal, a co-worker had to go home seriously ill. We were one man down, and we needed to check in on him to make sure he was OK. Although this was going to interfere with meeting our deadline, it was more important for us to take care of our co-worker than the proposal. With this show of support, and with one man down, we were still able to get the proposal done on time because we pulled together as a team and had an added amount of energy to complete the task at hand. We also set the example that people are our most important asset.
To show compassion in the work place, there are several actions you can practice on a daily basis:
Listen Empathetically: We are trained in school to be good speakers, but we are not trained to be good listeners, which is equally as important. Active, genuine listening is vital as well as taking a moment at the end of a conversation to allow the other person to add something they have forgotten. A lot of us daydream or start thinking of our response before the person has finished speaking, thereby not listening carefully, which is conveyed in your responses or body language. Make sure you are genuinely listening. There are a lot of good listening articles out there to help improve your listening skills.
Be Curious: Be curious about your co-workers and ask questions in regards to their personal being, or a project they are working on you know is important to them. People like to talk about themselves, so asking some deeper questions other than, “How are you today?” makes people feel interesting. In their responses, make sure you are actively listening. It’s fun to hear about other people’s lives and you may learn something!
Have Respect: Showing respect for others make others respect you. Listening happens to be one of the greatest manifestations of respect, so here is yet another reason to become a better listener. No doubt, there are times when it is trying to practice respect, however, rather than making a remark you may regret later, ask the speaker a question that could lead to answer you may better understand.
Practicing compassion is a trait that will benefit others as much as it benefits yourself. After all, we spend a good portion of our lives at the work place, why not make it the best experience we can, for ourselves and for others.
