Empathy
Hi, I’m Eric, founder & CEO of Amari, a new supplement company that provides active lifestyle consumers with convenient, effective products that help them to play longer and recover faster.
We have started posting to LinkedIn about our experience launching a company and a product in the times of COVID. Our goal is to share what we learn in the hopes that you will find it helpful as you navigate these unprecedented times.
Today we wanted to talk about something a little different, empathy.
Empathy and entrepreneurs are two words not usually used in the same sentence. Many entrepreneurs do not want to have any chinks in the armor and typically want to keep the pedal to the metal and push through any challenges. Some feel that empathy is a sign of weakness.
When the topic of empathy comes up, entrepreneurs typically use it in a different context, really understanding your customer and what motivates them to purchase a product or service. Empathy has taken on a new importance to us in recent months.
The first is the kind that I hoped not to share. Members of the Amari team have experienced the loss of loved ones related to COVID.
In times like these, we need to be there for our coworkers. They are part of our extended family and this unique situation does not allow for the family visits and traditional goodbyes during the last moments. Very hard to hear and uncomfortable, but we were glad to be there for our co-workers. They just wanted someone to speak with and listen to them. We don’t have the answers.
As the leader of the company, all we can do is be supportive and empathetic realizing everyone will handle, grieve and be ready to come back to work on their own time.
Empathy has been growing in importance in our day to day with the business. We’ve had to be patient with the current pace of the business world that has shifted into a lower gear as many are working from home. Suppliers, customers, investors and partners are dealing with the new reality of homeschooling their kids, juggling responsibilities with spouses, surgical strikes to the grocery store all the while wondering when they can get a haircut again. People are wading through conflicting information about travel and whether or not it is safe to congregate in groups, inside or out. And serious issues like spouses losing their jobs has thrown a wrench into our relatively smoothing functioning society. Having patience with people, being empathetic and knowing they are fighting their own battles has been helpful to navigate these challenging times.
My background
Prior to Amari, I spent 10+ years working with early stage CPG companies and commercializing technology from a University setting. We leveraged a community-based model that put the best domain experts in the room with our client companies. I was fortunate enough to learn from those experiences and now apply those lessons as an operator. Eric at AmariBotanicals.com
