SHAKER HEIGHTS, OHIO, UNITED STATES, May 28, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Empathy is the missing link to innovation and inclusion, which are so elusive for organizations. Empathy is also a human superpower, the key to professional success, and desperately needed in our divided society right now.
Jackie Acho is the founder of the Acho Group and author of Currency of Empathy: The Secret to Thriving in Business & Life.
With Currency of Empathy, Acho makes the economic case for bringing more humanity to work.
“My goal in doing this work is to shift paradigms that aren’t serving us anymore,” says Acho. “We should not be leaning into systems that are degenerative to the human spirit. We should be changing those systems to become worthy of our time and energy, growing leaders who retain their humanity. Once you start investing in the relational currency of an organization, it doesn’t take long to unleash the human spirit. Those organizations are healthier and more profitable. They are great places to work.”
Acho admits empathy was not her professional starting point. As a student, she gravitated toward science and math. She earned a Ph.D. in chemistry from MIT. Then McKinsey came recruiting. She loved the work and stayed a decade, the last 4 years as a partner.
“Empathy was not my education. It was not the overt focus of my early professional career,” recalls Acho. “My specialty was growth, innovation, scientific commercialization, strategy, and making exciting plans for the future. I enjoyed working on broad, real-world issues with people and making a difference.”
Acho would go on to launch her own consultancy. With the benefit of being able to choose with whom she was working, she chose organizations that had the highest capacity for realizing innovative plans. These organizations were often led by remarkably empathetic people, who inspired trust and collaboration rather than fear and competition.
“I chose CEOs who had the potential to do something special because they had this engaging quality,” says Acho. “Initially, I picked them because I admired how they integrated their lives. Most of the people I chose to work with were parents who had wonderful relationships with their kids, but also had great careers.”
Though she could recognize this quality in others, her long hours began to take a toll on her own family.
“There are two times in human development when empathy development in the brain is in overdrive: one is early childhood; the other is parenting young children,” says Acho. “My kids awakened my empathy. They pulled me into a better work and family balance than I could have achieved on my own. The empathy I developed – remembered really - as a hard-working yet hands-on parent was an unexpected gift, personally and professionally.”
Close Up Radio will feature Jackie Acho in an interview with Jim Masters on June 1st at 1pm EDT
Listen to the show on BlogTalkRadio
If you have any questions for our guest, please call (347) 996-3389
For more information, visit www.theachogroup.com
Currency of Empathy: The Secret to Thriving in Business & Life is available on Amazon
Lou Ceparano
Close Up Television & Radio
+ +1 (631) 850-3314
email us here
Visit us on social media:
Facebook
