Showing Empathy In a Single Sentence
What do you think when you hear the word “empathy?”
Webster’s defines it as “the capacity for participation in another’s feelings or ideas.”
The Synonym Finder by J.I. Rodales lists similar words to “empathize” as:
- respond
- react
- understand
- be in tune
- be hip to
- be into
- be turned on to
- imagine
- project
- vicariously
- put oneself into another’s place or shoes
Sounds like “girl” stuff, doesn’t it? It’s all that touchie-feelie stuff that we are too busy to bother with. We have things to do, people to see, money to make.
Yet, I would argue that we can show empathy in a non-gushy manner that will make all the difference to our customer or our employee or our spouse. In fact, we can show empathy in a single sentence.
Joe Rawlinson of Return Customers wrote a blog post recently entitled Show Empathy to Customers in which he tells of a shopping experience at Costco:
On a recent trip to Costco, there was a big thunderstorm brewing nearby. I knew that by the time I got out of the store, it could very well be a torrential downpour typical of a summer thunderstorm in Texas.
I didn’t want to get wet and I surely didn’t want my purchases to get soaked either.
I rushed through the store and picked up the items on my list. As I waited to exit, the guy that checks receipts said, “We’ll get you on your way before the rain hits.”
That little interaction literally calmed me down.
One sentence: “We’ll get you on your way before the rain hits.”
The cashier showed empathy by simply being aware of their surroundings and how the customer might be feeling by putting themselves in their shoes for a moment.
Sometimes we have to lift our head from the details of our daily life – take a quick look around – and put ourselves in the shoes of others. Just that one simple act can make the difference between a non-event and a Make or Break Moment that has led to the development of customer loyalty for Joe and Costco.
How can you show empathy today?
