Benjamin Firth Gear-Up Reading Questions:
What role does empathy play in your life and how has it helped you?
- Empathy plays a large role in manya ctions I take throughout the day. Part of my current job is acting as a customer service representative. There are countless situations where I'm interacting with a frustrated customer, and according to a strict interpretation of our company policies I can't help them in a given situation. It takes listening to them, considering how I would feel in the situation, and compparing that to our company goals to make better decisions for both parties. I think this ultimately leads to better relationships with our consumers.
How does empathy help you build better software?
- In the software world, much of what you do has to be flashy and eye catching. However, with things like ADA compliance, many of these "flashy" things can make it very challenging for some people to read and understand using items like screen readers. By empathizing with something like this, you're better able to address the consumer population as a whole, and ultimately make a better product for everyone.
Why is empathy important for working on a team?
- It's easy to get stuck thinking that one way is better than another when discussing things with your work team. Empathy helps show where another person is coming from in their desires, which in turn adds another layer to the solution. People have so many different backgrounds and experiences, all of which are valuable and offer different insites.
Describe a situation in which your ability to empathize with a colleague or teammate was helpful.
- One day at work we had a lot of meetings (more than usual). One of my colleagues had voiced an opinion in an earlier meeting that was largely ignored, and I could tell it made them feel frustrated. As the day went along, they didn't really go out of their way to participate more after that first issue, so during our last meeting I made a point of reaching out to them specifically and asking what they thought about the situation. I believe that being given that specific attention made them feel more validated and part of the team, and afterwards they were a much more active participant.
When do you find it most difficult to be empathetic in professional settings? How can you improve your skills when faced with these scenarios?
- I find it challenging to feel empathy when faced with situations that test my feeling of fairness. It makes me feel a little left out which in turn makes me shut down a bit. I need to work more on using this empathy to understand the other persons point of view, so that even if I don't ultimately agree with it I atleast know where they're coming from.