The Society of Professional Consultants

The Society of Professional Consultants (SPC) is a professional development organization for independent consultants, solo professionals, and entrepreneurs. We offer networking, mentoring, and education for our members. The SPC facilitates virtual networking and workshops for both new and experienced consultants from around the world. Our membership is limited to solo consultants and business owners.

We encourage our members to collaborate, share best practices, and learn from each other. The SPC is not a referral network and we don't require our members to refer business to each other.

The SPC welcomes and encourages participation in our community by consultants of all ages, backgrounds, and identities. We are committed to promoting and sustaining a culture that values mutual respect, tolerance, and learning. Our standards of conduct page has more information about our policies and member responsibilities.

Virtual Workshop - Thursday, December 5, 2024 at 3:00 p.m. EST

The Empathy Dilemma: How Successful Leaders Balance People, Performance, and Personal Boundaries

The SPC and the Society of Women Environmental Professionals (SWEP) are partnering to bring you this workshop.

All across the globe, organizations are becoming more human-centric. They've jettisoned old paradigms of success that center on endless overtime and constant employee sacrifice. They’ve tied success to purpose and workforce morale and helped people balance personal and professional needs as their priorities change. They’ve made shifts that are both necessary and positive. 

But now, those striving to be empathetic leaders and colleagues are experiencing the dark side: Taking on extra work, avoiding conflict, spending too much time on personal issues, or simply burning out from trying to balance concern for colleagues with the needs of the business. How can we remain human-focused and still maintain high performance, set personal boundaries, and avoid burning out, without being treated like villains? 

In this timely talk by empathy advocate, TEDx speaker, podcaster, and strategist, Maria Ross, author of The Empathy Edge and now The Empathy Dilemma, you'll discover how empathy benefits your organization's performance and why your perception of empathy might be false and leading you astray. You'll also learn about 5 valuable pillars you can shore up to be both an effective AND empathetic leader and find more success.

Takeaways:

• DEFINE what empathy at work actually is - and more importantly, what it is NOT
• DISCOVER 3 bottom-line organizational benefits of empathetic leadership and culture – through presenting relevant data and research and discussing case studies that disrupt traditional thinking. Empathy is not just good for the world, but it can be a competitive advantage. We'll walk through the financial & organizational benefits of leading with empathy.
• RECOGNIZE why empathy at work is so challenging in a post-pandemic world, especially for leaders 
• DISCOVER and PRACTICE the Five Pillars of Effective Empathy to avoid burnout and better balance people, performance, and personal boundaries. 

There's no charge for this workshop.

About our Speaker

Maria Ross has a simple mission: igniting business growth with empathy for an innovative and meaningful life.

As founder of Red Slice, she advises organizations on how to better engage and connect with the people who matter most. Her clients learn to imbue their work with compassion to create strong leaders, thriving cultures, and winning brands.

She’s authored multiple books, including her most recent, The Empathy Dilemma and The Empathy Edge. She hosts The Empathy Edge Podcast, featuring C-suite executives, authors, thought leaders, and creative thinkers who agree that empathy is required for success in the modern world.

Maria has spoken to audiences ranging from TEDx to The New York Times to Salesforce to The 3% Conference and delivered powerful leadership training workshops to companies such as CHRISTUS Health, New York Life, and TBWA/Worldwide. Her insights have appeared in many media outlets, including MSNBC, NPR, Entrepreneur, Forbes, Newsweek, Huffington Post, and Thrive Global.