Welcome to November.

Andrew Griffiths wrote recently that we should become a Master of Empathy. This involves walking in another’s person’s shoes – to listen, to hear and to feel a person’s pain, anxiety, confusion and needs. Listening is our most important faculty. Using the right words to communicate comes next.

If we truly understand a person’s needs, then we can help with advice, options and direction.

We do not have to ‘win’ an argument by becoming angry and one-eyed. Having an influence over how a person acts or what a person does is much more powerful and long lasting.

To have influence we need to be humble by showing patience, loyalty, compassion and forgiveness. We should be prepared to understand the other person’s point of view, even respect it. We can then build a relationship based on trust and honesty.  With trust there is permission to share our thoughts, feelings and actions and move to a state of praising, hope, purpose and personal fulfilment.

The pen may be mightier than the sword but our behaviour and verbal remarks can be the most cutting of all.

I wish you an influential and humble month…….Mario