The Empathy Dilemma: How Successful Leaders Balance People, Performance, and Personal Boundaries

All across the globe, organizations are becoming more human-centric. They've jettisoned old paradigms of success that center on endless overtime and constant employee sacrifice. They've tied success to purpose and workforce morale and helped people balance personal and professional needs as their priorities change. They've made shifts that are both necessary and positive. 

But now, those striving to be empathetic leaders and colleagues are experiencing the dark side: Taking on extra work, avoiding conflict, spending too much time on personal issues, or simply burning out from trying to balance concern for colleagues with the needs of the business.

How can we remain human-focused and inclusive, and still maintain high performance, personal boundaries, and our own mental health, without being treated like villains? 

In this timely talk by empathy advocate, TEDx speaker, podcaster, and strategist, Maria Ross, author of the new book, The Empathy Dilemma: How Successful Leaders Balance Performance, People, and Personal Boundaries, goes back to the basics of what empathy is, and what it isn't. She details where leaders are going wrong and how to navigate complicating factors such as generational mindsets, philosophical differences, and diverse life experiences while still creating an inclusive, trusting environment. Ross shares the Five Pillars of Effective Empathetic Leadership: self-awareness, self-care, clarity, decisiveness, and joy, and leaders will discover actionable tactics to create the firm foundation that enables inclusion to flourish alongside high performance and tough decisions. And Ross shares how to ensure empathy is a two-way street between all involved parties.

This session is the guide every leader needs to embrace the new human-centered workplace, deliver bottom-line results, and create real change ALL AT THE SAME TIME!

Learning Objectives:

• DEFINE what empathy means in a work context and why common myths are causing backlash and burnout.
• DISCOVER how empathetic leadership impacts inclusion and why without it, most DEIB efforts will fail.
• EXPLORE and DISCUSS the five pillars of effective empathy (including practical tactics) and how they are vital to balancing people, high performance, and personal boundaries.