How can compassion help you?

Last week I talked about how compassion in leaders can benefit all the team

But you might be asking how does this actually work in practice?

According to Prof Michael West (who has researched this area regarding teams in the NHS),there are four behavioural elements that are needed to help people and workplaces become more compassionate places and give support to our colleagues who are in distress.

The good news is that they are very simple and will make a huge difference to all.

Today we will look at the first one:

Being present

Yes Being Present.

well ok, you might say,

I am present, I am here, I am sitting/standing here with my colleague.

is that all that Prof West is saying?

really?

I would offer to you, to stretch your thinking and consider, are you REALLY being present?

Being in someone’s PRESENCE is not the same as being PRESENT.

Sitting or standing with someone and really being there in the moment. Taking it all in and being with them in those minutes of need.

Try it and see how it feels to you in that moment.

Are you noticing what you are seeing, hearing, feeling and touching?

Is that voice in your head saying that there is too much to do, worrying about the conversation you have just had, or that upcoming meeting?

Or are you totally focussed on your colleague in front of you who may be in distress or pain?

How can you have compassion and be present at the same time?

I will wager it can be difficult to be fully aware of what is happening with your colleague without some active presence.

We can all get caught up in our own thoughts so easily, we miss what is happening with our colleague/spouse/child/parent.

Being present can benefit us all, in all our relationships.

Why not have a go and see what happens for you and how did your colleague react to your being present?

Let me know, I’d be very interested to hear The Professionals Coach