Communicating empathy in a digital workplace

In this age of digital work, remote colleagues and trying to engage with people across 20 different platforms at any given time, it’s no wonder communication is even more important to organisations of all shapes and sizes. It becomes even more challenging when trying to infer kindness, empathy and compassion via channels that are inherently ‘clinical’.

So how do we ensure our communications in a digital world convey empathy? How can we show our colleagues, our employees and even our leaders that we care?

Here are our three top tips for communicating with empathy in a digital world.

1. Communicate positively

   Regardless of the situation, communicating in a way that is kind and sometimes even over-the-top positive, can often be the difference in how your response fairs. As the saying goes: kill them with kindness.
   
   You can never know what someone on the other side of an email or message is experiencing - personal life or otherwise. So, think, think and think again before you press that send button and don’t take your initial interpretation of their first email or message as gospel.
   
   Re-read your work, and when you do, remember a communication’s intention is always outlived and outmeasured by its impact. A poorly phrased or abruptly blunt email can have a real impact on a person’s wellbeing, especially if they aren’t feeling their best.
   
   

2. Give credit where it’s due and acknowledge everyone

   No, this doesn’t only apply to work-related situations or if you have direct reports. Give credit, praise, understanding and touch base, whenever you can. 
   
   It could be as simple as acknowledging the more quiet folk in the Teams chat who gave a great contribution, or it could even be making sure you greet everyone, and checking in when you jump onto a call. The difference between a distant leader and a well-liked leader is often as simple as saying, “Hello, how was your weekend?”.
   
   If you’ve ever had your name remembered by a CEO, you know exactly what we mean!
   

3. Clarity is kindness

   Brene Brown said it best when she said ‘clear is kind; unclear is unkind’ in her book, Dare to Lead. She was talking about having tough conversations, but the adage is true for any kind of communication. 

   In a digital world, nuances don’t translate well. If you ‘sugar coat’ your language, make it too flowery or corporate, you risk your true meaning not getting across.

   Finding it challenging to understand the intent of a message is frustrating, and doesn’t help people to be productive. This is where empathy steps in - put yourself in the shoes of the people you’re communicating with, and ask whether or not your message would be quickly and easily understood.
   

   If not, then you’re not being kind. So ditch the jargon and the subtle hints, and be clear (not blunt) to help everyone feel well informed and supported.

So, if we were to summarise it: take the time to be kind, clear, concise and give credit where it’s due. A digital world gives us the opportunity to connect with people from all walks of life, so ensure you’re connecting in a way that is memorable for good reason.

For more on nailing the fundamentals of comms, see our course!

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