Awareness of other people's emotions

It can be tricky for a manager to accurately understand an employee’s emotional states. When people appear distressed, we tend to jump to non-specific, general labels (for example, “they’re upset”) without really understanding the nuances of their emotional experience. But it's exactly these nuances that can provide vital information about how to handle a situation.

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There’s more to understanding another person’s emotions than just listening to their spoken words. Understanding requires being attentive to the non-verbal emotional messages that are communicated. 

 

Think of a situation where you had to speak to someone who was distressed. Describe the situation here

 

What verbal messages (words) did the person convey?

 

What non-verbal messages was the person projecting? Think of the following: 

Posture: 

Tone: 

Eye contact:

Energy level: 

Other:  

 

Was there a discrepancy between the verbal messages and the non-verbal messages? 

 

When you consider all information, what emotional state do you think the person was experiencing? 

 

Throughout the course of your day, make an active effort to pay attention to other people’s verbal and non-verbal messages. Take note of any discrepancies between the two. Think about what emotion(s) people are most likely experiencing when you consider both their verbal and non-verbal messages. 

 

You notice major discrepancies between an employee’s verbal and non-verbal emotional messages. If so, this may create a great opportunity to sit down with them and connect by asking for feedback about anything you could do to improve their ability to do their job. 

 

Contributors include:Mary Ann Baynton

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