This week we’re looking at a competency that you’re probably overlooking currently: Appreciating Others.

Appreciating Others, as the name would suggest, is all about focus on others, specifically identifying with and caring about others. Those who are skilled at Appreciating Others are great at making people feel truly seen and heard. They take the time to get know people on a deeper level and really connect with them.

Those skilled in Appreciating Others can connect with all different kinds of people because they work to understand and bond with each person as an individual. They appreciate the unique perspectives and talents that each human brings. They build relationships well because people are more likely to trust them. When you truly care about someone they can tell, and they can also tell when you’re not being sincere.

This is one of the first competencies that gets thrown by the wayside when a crisis hits. But it is actually one of the most important skills to be leaning on right now. People will not follow someone that they don’t believe in and that they don’t think has their best interest at heart. And that is even truer during a crisis. It is human nature to go into self-preservation mode when our safety or health gets threatened. And if you have not spent time developing relationships with your employees and showing them that you truly care about them as individuals, they will view your actions and decisions with skepticism.

If you’d like to start developing your ability to appreciate others, you can take more time to casually associate with people. Ask them how their weekend was. What kinds of activities have they been doing during quarantine? What are their favorite parts of their job? Taking the time to build these more informal connections will help you get to know the person as a whole and therefore have a better understanding of who they are as an individual. You will be surprised what you learn about others when you stop to ask, and actually listen to their answers. Your staff need this type of interaction even more while working virtually and while living through a global pandemic. Taking the time to stop and get to know each individual and to truly appreciate what they bring to the group will build a great team and great loyalty and it will also help relieve some of the stress that your employees are feeling. They will know that you’ll do everything you can for them during this difficult time and will be more at ease because of that knowledge.