Conscious Empathy

𝙑𝙞𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 occurs anytime we communicate through a screen-based or digital mode and the measurable disconnects that may occur.

As most of us have an accessible screen much of the time, we communicate that way regardless of our physical location.

Dr. Karen Sobel Lojeski developed her work on virtual distance more than 15 years ago and has conducted research on thousands of global teams with millions of employees.

Her work and organization are accessible through VirtualDistance.com 

Three components of virtual distance – that identify 10 factors – are 𝘼𝙛𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝘿𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚, 𝙊𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝘿𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙋𝙝𝙮𝙨𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡 𝘿𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚.

Below please see an infographic based upon her work and research.

Given today’s work situation, where there are 7 times more applicants to remote job offerings than on-site (according to a CareerBuilder survey), understanding how to manage and connect in a virtual world is critical.

At the end of the day, teams function best when there is trust, communication, and a shared context for work. 

Shared goals, mission, and purpose with a common interdependence provide significantly higher innovation, job satisfaction, employee engagement, and leadership effectiveness.

Our values are what each of us judge to be most important in life. 

When our personal values are not in alignment with organizational values, we become disengaged and disillusioned. Trying to behave in opposition to our personal beliefs creates resentment, dissonance, stress, and burnout.

“𝙑𝙞𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙣𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙬𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙥𝙝𝙮𝙨𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙡𝙤𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙, 𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙖𝙩 𝙨𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜.”

❓Which of your personal values do you need in alignment to succeed in an organization?

❓Which of the components of virtual distance has the greatest impact on your team?