Empathetic Leadership

People for success founder kristyn haywood talks about compassionate leadership and offers five tips to lead more empathetically.

- Julie Cooper

If Covid-19 has taught the world anything, it’s the greater need for collaboration, kindness and, above all, connection, which are all fiercely feminine traits. Not only are these characteristics altering our home life, but they’re also completely changing our work life – forever redefining the future of leadership.

“It’s a fiercely feminine time,” says People for Success Founder Kristyn Haywood. “During a crisis like COVID-19, the feminine qualities of empathy, vulnerability, and expression are incredibly important for the future sustainability of businesses. As such, leadership after this pandemic is going to be much more inspiring.”

Ruling with an iron fist? Not inspiring. Ruling with a soft heart? Also, not inspiring. While feminine traits are indeed necessary to cultivate creativity and foster connection, that’s only half the story.

The masculine and feminine are like yin and yang. They are both essential to achieving balance, and therefore, success. However, when one is slightly off kilter and the pendulum swings hard to one side or the other, that’s where imbalance and faulty leadership can occur.

“When those feminine and masculine qualities are in balance in both men and women, that’s what makes a great leader,” Kristyn says. “And, we love to work with those leaders because we feel cared for – there’s compassion and empathy. They demonstrate qualities of care and achievement balanced with focus and discipline.”

And, the results of this balanced leadership extend beyond the manager-staff relationship, translating into a better experience for the customer.