Building Empathy in Teams With Personal Stories

Sharing Stories in Teams Creates Connective Relationship Tissue

Personal Stories Help Build Empathy in Teams

The alphabet is my enemy!

Or so I thought when I was nine.

You see, with a last name like Wetzstein, the other W's, X's, Y's, and Z's and I would take up the last portion of the lunch line, which was sorted by alphabetical order.

We were the last to get pizza, or chicken nuggets, or whatever else was on the menu for the day.

Sometimes popular items would run out...and I was acutely aware of the 90% of my class that got whatever was no longer available to me. Even if I didn't want it, the forbidden fruit concept had taken hold.

The alphabet was clearly my enemy. Maybe I could get my name changed?

Until one day, we did REVERSE ALPHABETICAL ORDER! 🤯

Oh what a glorious day! This is what it felt like to be on top!

It only happened once, but the memory is clear as day in my mind.

I felt like a king! 👑

This is the kind of story that comes up in our team building.

When people share small stories about themselves, their history, and their experiences, it humanizes them.

Steve from accounting becomes Steve the guy who played baseball in the Little League World Series. Your team has a ton of stories like this and when shared, they will add depth and dimension to the relationships in your team.

When we can hear, see, and understand the depth and dimension behind our teammates histories, we gain appreciation for them as a person.
We understand they are more than the role they fill.

This happens naturally when we share stories about our life. Even silly ones from when we were 9. 👶

If you were asked to share a fun childhood memory, what would it be? Contact us today and get your team seeing each other with more depth, dimension, and empathy.