It's So Easy - Evaluating Empathy💅
Evaluating empathy in job candidates
Hey everyone,
In the past month or so, I’ve encountered numerous situations where I couldn’t help but notice the impact of empathy.
Acting empathetically is woven into just about everything I publish at Lying to Ourselves. But this week, we’ll discuss how to evaluate empathy in others.
I hope you enjoy it,
Ben
It's So Easy - Evaluating Empathy💅
Last week I wrote about and provided a few examples and counter-examples of empathy in the workplace. Hopefully, you agree that empathy is essential. I also hope you started looking for examples of empathy in your everyday life, whether in your interactions, the products you use, or the culture in which you live.
Why am I pushing this idea of recognizing empathy (or a lack thereof) when encountering it? Because, unlike other personal traits, it’s tough to interview a job candidate for empathy. Just about any intelligent candidate knows that empathy is a crucial skill, so they’ll weave the most empathetic version of themselves into an interview.
Practicing empathy is much harder, and that’s where your ability to recognize it comes into play. My goal for this post is for you to come away with an idea for evaluating candidates for empathy.1
Making it easy
If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that empathetic people make meaningful interactions easy.
There’s little drama or superficial communication. They respond quickly, are direct, and are clear (not verbose). They’re the kind of people who pick up the phone when you call because they like it when people pick up the phone when they call.
In the case of a job candidate, look for the following:
Do they make it easy for you to talk to them? Are they responsive to you and the team?
Do they proactively answer questions that you’re likely to have?
Have they done the work to have in-depth conversations about your organization? Are they prepared (and do they expect you to be ready)?
To be clear, being easy and intentional doesn’t mean that anyone should be an overeager doormat. It means that the candidate is respectful and acts with urgency. For example, they should suggest an alternative if an interview time doesn’t work for them.
Great products are easy to use. Great sales processes make it easy to buy. Why should you expect any different from your candidates?
You’re not off the hook
But here’s the thing, practicing empathy cuts both ways.
Are you and your organization easy to communicate with? Are you clear? Prepared? Direct? Do you make it easy to work with you?
Empathetic people want to work with other empathetic people. The candidates you will want to hire expect a lot from you.
Full disclosure: I’m still learning to evaluate people for empathy, particularly over the long term. If you have any ideas, I’m all ears.