5 Reasons Why Empathic Entrepreneurs are Misunderstood
5 Reasons Why Empathic Entrepreneurs are Misunderstood
Empaths or highly sensitive people are probably one of the most misunderstood groups on the planet. We are sensitive to loud noises and sounds, so we can't always be in large areas. Imagine being an empathic entrepreneur, someone who constantly has to go out, shake hands, and meet people all day. How would that feel? Some of you might get energy just from meeting so many people, for empaths we are different. Most of us were probably misunderstood our entire lives, I know I was. I was seen as the weird kid, the quiet kid, the kid that just wanted to be left alone with her one or two friends. I didn't really care how people viewed me cause I knew I was different, however it was on a different level when I became an entrepreneur.
1. We were seen as outcasts
I explained this a little bit above, but we were seen as the outcasts in our school. The weirdos, the kids that just didn't want to be around people. Most of us were super smart and got good grades, but we wanted to be by ourselves. As entrepreneurs, we needed to be more outgoing, so we are FORCED to gather some traits that make us more "likable" so we can get business. Empaths can't meet people like normal people do, it has to be a 1:1 experience, so we can intuitively feel them out.
2. You are describing an introvert!
Yes, most of us are introverts, but not always. Empaths often have to train themselves to be more extroverted in certain situations, like networking for example. We cannot be in one place for more than one or two hours without the right protection for our energy. You might even see some of us taking a break to go outside when we are at a party cause we need to be in silence. Someone like myself who takes calls on a daily basis can only take a number of calls at a time. The magic number is four calls a day and unless it's a client I won't be able to take more calls cause I need to protect my energy. It's not that I don't want to talk to you, it's just that I need to recharge!
3. I am an empath, which means I can totally work with you! I am in alignment!
Not exactly. A lot of empaths might have the same viewpoints about the world, their business, and just life in general, but they might not be right for you or your business. I've worked with all sorts of people, empath or not. It's all about energy at the end of the day. I always ask myself these questions before hiring someone or when getting hired:
Do your values match with theirs?
Are your goals aligned with the empathic business you are hiring?
Do you understand their needs for boundaries?
Are your boundaries understood?
Do you have a term sheet laying all of this out?
If I answered no to any of these questions, then I would talk with the person I just hired or re-think my decision. Speaking of boundaries...
4. I hired an empathic entrepreneur, which means I can still call them and talk to them about non-work things right? We are friends now!
No! Business is still business whether or hire an empath or not. Empaths are notorious for not being able to set boundaries in their lives or businesses, it's how many of us get in deep with CEOs hiring us to do one thing and then essentially having us do the job of four people. As empathic entrepreneurs, you need to set HARD boundaries on office hours, deadlines, and when a client should call you. All of my clients know my office hours and are aware if they text, message, or email me off-hours they will not receive an answer until the next business day. They are also aware of the scope of work laid out in the contract and are aware that are limited to two calls before the contract is signed.
I will allow more calls if the situation calls for it, but most do not require more than two calls. My clients are well aware of my boundaries, but it was even harder to make boundaries for MYSELF. I have a soft stop in my business around 6:00 pm, and a hard stop at 9:30 pm. The last scheduled call in my scheduler is for 4:30 pm -5:00 pm and I normally end my calls at 5:00 or 6:00 pm. I end my days by sending off more emails or messages on LinkedIn. Create a story for my social media pages and then close my laptop when I feel satisfied.
5. Empaths are never in the city!
I can't speak for all empaths of course, but this is true for me. I am an empath and if the job doesn't require it, I will be the furthest away from the city as possible, A lot of people might think this is a mistake because entrepreneurs will have to be close to a major city. This is not true, especially these days where everyone is networking from the comfort of their own homes. Most empaths I know don't live the city life, they are often in the country, or suburbs of the city. They like the quiet, the nature around them and it's better for grounding purposes. Most empaths can't stand the busyness of a city.
Be Empathically Social is Coming Back!
We are bringing BES back in March! Be Empathically Social is all about how you can protect yourself on social media as an empath. We (meaning myself and Cara Sevier) have created this webinar just for empaths like yourself!
If you ever felt like deleting Facebook from all the negativity, we would love to have you in this webinar.
When: March 5th at 6:30 pm
Where: TBA.
Get on our email list to learn more about this event!