Beach diaries: An evening at Muzhappilangad

It was the last day of our 4th semester exams. For long we had been planning for a one day trip somewhere around Thalassery; and finally it was the day. We- the ‘Crab Girlz’, a group of 10 engineering students along with the aunt in our hostel & her children sets out in a taxi car, off to Muzhappilangad; the only drive-in beach in Kerala.

After a little driveway, our car brought a routine from the highway and set about passing through an unpaved road, winding through the palm orchards. The thunder of the sea was heard from a distance and I began to feel excited just like I invariably behave when I am in a beach.

I was pleasantly surprised to see the beach. It was rustic, beautiful and was absolutely virgin. Unlike other beaches, here there were no stone benches or lamps decorating the shore. Instead the shore is bordered by the majestic beach pines, giving it an exotic look. 

We couldn't further tie our feet by just watching the sea from a distance. We waded through the sea, splashing waters, went after the milky surfing waves, as if there is no tomorrow! The best thing is that the water pool is shallow, which makes us to swim without the fear of powerful tides. The guard might have fed up with us. Whenever we go little distance into the sea he starts blowing the whistle. Finally, upon getting a strict warning from him, we retreated and started to explore the shore.

Feeling the frothing Arabian Sea, tickling our feet, we walked from one end to the other. One end is bordered with pines whereas other end is lined with black rocks. In the eastern sea, there lies the Dharmadam islet, full of palm trees and creepers. It is possible to walk to the island during low tides. Not so far from the shore, on the black rocks, we could take in a statue of hammer, sickle and star; the symbol of the communist party of India. We could discover the discreet ripples murmuring the hymn of rebellion.

We sat down on the rocks enjoying the calm and enthralling ambiance of the sea. I believe this is the best place where you can unload your tensions as well as enjoy the happiness of beach driving. And then, the much awaited time arrived; the sunset! The cherry, beautiful sun bids goodbye to the sky, and slowly returned to his abode.

Darkness was spreading all over and it was time to depart. We got up reluctantly and walked out from the sea, leaving our footprints and memories there....
 

Distance between customer empathy & employee empathy

Empathy! This is one of the vague terms I was fairly certain what it mean, but haven't realized its importance until it caused a vast impact on me. So I decided to know in detail what's empathy and its importance in the business world.

You might recall former US President Bill Clinton's famous quote, "I feel your pain." It says all about empathy. Empathy is the capacity to recognize emotions that are being experienced by another sentient or fictional being.  It is the ability to put yourself in another's shoes and walk a mile.

It could be said that empathy in its purest form is the force that moves a business forward. For every organization, customer is king and for a business to experience success, they need to not just see or hear the activity around them, but also relate to the people they serve. Customer empathy(CE)- the ability to identify, understand, and respond appropriately to a customer's emotional state, before, during, and after the transaction is the key when it comes to delivering a great customer experience.

Organizations which focus on customer empathy, have strict quality check to ensure customer satisfaction. To ensure this, the employees are instructed to adopt a list of procedures while handling each customer. To an extent it's a sound excercise to ensure client satisfaction. But when it comes to a situation where employees are overloaded with customer issues, will it be possible to trace each and every statement in the checklist? Many companies, while trying to implement customer empathy, fail here. ie, they fail to notice their own employees sweat over machines,race towards deadlines or crunch data. Instead of firing the employees for violating their documented customer empathy rules, the top authority should have taken a moment to understand why this happened; then they should have realized that employees are also human beings and not some machines loaded with CE software and empathy checklist. It is here where the employers have to recognize the importance of employee empathy.

Employee empathy is critical skill for one, simple reason-trust. When an employer/leader shows that he/she is aware of the employees' feelings and appreciate those feelings, it builds trust. The employee has faith that the concerned authority will atleast hold their opinions into consideration. An employer can then employ this intellect of their touches to give the employees what they require to follow, further fortifying the relationship, increasing collaboration and improving productivity. Empathizing with the employees can inspire employee loyalty and dedication to the company and its goals.

Without empathy, a person might command people without regard to workers limitations or needs, and end up losing respect and cooperation from subordinates who regularly feel dismissed. Then the employees will always have their guards up. They will  feel like they have to look out for their own emotional interest. While with an empathetic leader, the employee knows that their feelings will never be simply overlooked or ignored.

This picture says all about the relation between customer empathy and employee empathy. It's not rocket science! It's so simple that the employers need to realize just two scenarios:

1. First and foremost they have to realize and accept the fact that customer empathy is directly proportional to employee empathy.

"Satisfied employees transfer their enthusiasm and commitment to customers. This in turn enhances customer satisfaction, driving additional business opportunities and revenue generation", says Karen Price, chief executive of E-Skills UK, the organization responsible for developing the UK's professional IT skills.

2. Customer empathy could be achieved only when the employees are allowed to be themselves and to use their own abilities & personalities, rather than trying to force-fit them into being carbon-copies of some ideal corporate 'branded' personality with 'QA  approved' behaviors.

Employers who fail to recognize these stand to lose out in the competition for a skilled workforce. Good workplaces are created through good attitude and thinking from management. Empathy for employees and consideration of work/life balance generates a particular company culture and finally leads to a successful organization in all aspects.