Gratitude, Empathy & Leadership in Polarized Times: A Thanksgiving Reflection

What does it look like to lead with gratitude and empathy when the world feels tense, divided, or emotionally heavy?

In this Thanksgiving reflection episode of From Keywords to Connections, Mary and Winnie explore how leaders can stay grounded and human in polarized times, especially inside the workplace. This is not just about being thankful in November. It is about building year-round team cultures rooted in respect, psychological safety, and real connection.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Why Thanksgiving is a reminder that we are in this together
• How to set clear, lived leadership values that actually shape culture
• Creating safe spaces for dialogue without forcing anyone to defend their identity
• Gratitude as a daily leadership strategy, not a seasonal one
• Empathy as one of the strongest tools for retention and trust
• The hiring tension between shared values and diverse thought
• What lasting leadership looks like in hard seasons

If you are leading a team, growing a business, or simply trying to show up well in a complicated world, this conversation will give you clarity, comfort, and practical ways to lead with more heart.

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Simplified SEO Consulting. May your heart be full, your team be supported, and your mission be clear.

Learn more about our services and values-driven approach at simplifiedseoconsulting.com.

#Leadership #Gratitude #Empathy #WorkplaceCulture #ValuesBasedBusiness #PsychologicalSafety #FromKeywordsToConnections #SimplifiedSEOConsulting #ThanksgivingReflection

Chapters

• 0:00 Embracing Gratitude and Empathy In Professional Life
• 3:32 Building Stronger Teams Through Values and Communication
• 6:12 Creating Safe Spaces For Open Dialogue
• 6:52 The Importance of Mental Health and Support
• 8:54 Practicing Gratitude Beyond the Holidays
• 11:31 Empathy as a Tool for Connection and Understanding
• 16:56 Leading with Empathy and Gratitude
• 19:21 Navigating Change and Team Dynamics
• 22:02 Hiring for Values and Diversity of Thought
• 25:35 Supporting Teams Through Challenges
• 28:51 Practicing Empathy Year-Round
• 34:00 Outro

Transcript

Winnie (00:52)
welcome back to from Keywords to Connections. I am so glad you're here. It's November and that means our social feeds are filled with fall leaves, thankful for posts and talk of gratitude. And we love that. We truly believe this season has a potential to reset our hearts and remind us what matters the most. But I also think that Thanksgiving gives us opportunity to go deeper, not just into what we're grateful for, but into how we're showing up for each other at home.

in our friendships and especially at work. Whether you're leading a team or simply trying to stay grounded in a very chaotic world, this is the perfect time to reflect on how we bring gratitude and empathy into our professional lives. Not just during the holidays, but all year long because it is good for us all year long. Today we're talking about how those two values, both gratitude and empathy, can help us lead with more clarity and connection, especially during times of political unrest or

We'll talk about setting values, creating safe spaces for dialogue and sticky questions of hiring for alignment and how gratitude becomes a year-round strategy for stronger, safer teams. Let's dive in.

Mary (02:08)
Perfect. I think that it's important to remember that Thanksgiving isn't just about getting together and having a turkey. I mean, that's what we all think about. Turkey Day, that's we call it. It's, you we're just getting together, we're having a meal. But it's really a ritual to connect with your family, to connect with your friends, to get together with people that you care about, and to really practice that mindset of gratitude. It's, you know, we get together and we say what I'm thankful for and thankful for the people in my life, things like that.

Winnie (02:14)
Yeah. day.

Mm-hmm.

Mary (02:35)
But I think oftentimes in a professional setting, especially like this year has been rough. I mean, it's been rough in a lot of ways, financially for people, politically for people. There's just been a lot of unrest. I think that we sometimes forget to bring that mindset to work, to our relationships at work. We're focused more on like how we're doing performance wise, the year in numbers, running the business and the human.

Winnie (02:43)
yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Mary (03:01)
piece can get pushed aside where we don't think about how we're fostering those relationships. So I think a good question to ask yourself is, know, how often do I pause to thank my team? You know, not just for meeting deadlines, but for what else they do, you know, the other things that they bring to the table, their, their compassion, their energy, their, their desire to work. How often do you actually pause and thank somebody for what they do? Just

Winnie (03:04)
Absolutely.

Mary (03:28)
because, not because it's Thanksgiving, but just, you know, on a daily basis.

Winnie (03:31)
Great question.

Mary (03:32)
And I don't think gratitude is, it's not just a nice gesture. It's really about building relationships. You know, it's really about changing how you think about things, you know, not just, like I said, not just thanking somebody for meeting that deadline. You know, that's something that's required as part of their job. They have to do it. You know, it's nice to be thanked for that. Great. But it's also nice to be thanked for the things that you do on the side, maybe that people don't notice.

Winnie (03:39)
Mm-hmm. ⁓

Mary (03:56)
the extra effort you put in, always coming to work, being happy and cheerful, being there for your coworkers. So I think that when we really think about it that way, instead of just focusing on Thanksgiving, we can make it a habit that changes our whole team dynamic, you know, and really make us better able to lead during times like this where things aren't really great. And we may have some conflict of ideals and interests on our team, or we may have some

conflicts in the real world that everybody's dealing with. So I think that that helps us to lead with that calmness and that peace whenever we're having those struggles.

Winnie (04:30)
you

Absolutely, and I love the idea of making it part of a year round, part of a strategy of building those relationships, building strong teams, because I know I for one am a lot more focused at work, I'm a lot more driven when feeling that gratitude, and I truly enjoy.

Mary (04:40)
Yeah.

Winnie (04:52)
trying to show our team how grateful we are for them, not just for the standard part of their jobs, but the little things. Them showing up when they're having hard days, or them communicating with us if they're having a hard day and being transparent with us. I'm grateful for them for doing that. And all the other little things that can so easily be overlooked or put to the side that...

I think that's a part of why we have such a great team, because we do try to make that gratitude a constant in our daily life.

Mary (05:27)
I agree. And I think that we really make it clear when we hire somebody or when we bring somebody new onto the team what our values are, what things are non-negotiable. We respect everybody. We have no tolerance for discrimination. We're committed to having a safe space where our team can talk about things if they're having difficulties in real life or at work. We encourage that open communication and being respectful to each other.

Winnie (05:33)
Thank

Mm-hmm.

Absolutely.

Mary (05:54)
those are things that we really stress to people that we bring onto the team. And that's what we look for in people that we interview too. I mean, we look for people who have that mentality so that they are gonna fit in with what we view as our core values. And I think that, you know, we can say that and we can say these are our values, but I think we have to model those as well because it's all, you know, do as I do, not as I say, you know, type of thing. But I think that...

Winnie (06:12)
Yeah.

Mary (06:19)
We show up in that way because we do follow through with those values and how we respond when one of our team is struggling or how we never have conflict between our team members. Let's be honest. We've been lucky that way so far. And how we screen for that alignment when we're hiring. I mean, it really should be part of your day-to-day conversation. It really should be a foundational part of what you do with your business, with your team, with your coworkers. You you should.

Winnie (06:23)
Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah.

Mary (06:47)
really make those values known and live by them every day.

Winnie (06:51)
Mm-hmm.

think it is super important that we make it a part of the day-to-day activities. But I think an important part to be able to make that happen is being able to have that empathy with boundaries. So we very much talk, like you just said, we value that open dialogue and that communication. But I think it takes some work to

be at a point where we can have that open communication, that dialogue, those check-ins, that sort of thing, because those can be big conversations and we need to be able to handle them when they happen and respond appropriately and have those boundaries of what crosses the line and what doesn't, especially in this.

kind of turbulent world that we kind of are finding ourselves in right now. ⁓ One, think, know, structures for hard conversations, when to have them, how to have them, you know, what meetings are the right places to have those conversations. Like we have those check-ins every Monday where we encourage people to be very open and honest. So that way, you know, some of our other meetings can be, get in, get right to the point, you know.

Mary (07:46)
Absolutely.

Mm-hmm.

Right.

Winnie (08:08)
are fully focused, we have that set time. We have quarterly check-ins where we have structured questions, but we also talk through things, pain points, et cetera. And we kind of have a structure for when to have those really vulnerable conversations, making sure that it's a safe environment that, like you about, we don't really have conflict when the-

Mary (08:22)
Mm-hmm.

Winnie (08:32)
than our team and that has built a safe environment where those conversations can happen authentically. And our teams feel safe not only talking to us, but talking to each other and supporting each other, which I think is incredibly important, especially when there are so many people right now in the world who don't psychologically feel safe, whether that's at work or politically or what have you.

Mary (08:35)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Winnie (08:58)
think having those kind of safe environments is incredibly important. And then having those limits, like, you know, we accept everybody for exactly who they are. You never have to defend who you are as a person, what your identity is. And I think we're pretty clear from that, like you said, from the beginning, from when we hire, so that way.

Mary (09:20)
Mm-hmm.

Winnie (09:21)
Again, it helps lead, it's all connected. That helps lead into the safe environment, safe environments help build out structured hard conversations.

Mary (09:30)
I also think one of the things that I think about when you say that is that we always, if people apologize for feeling the way they feel, we always correct that. We're like, don't, you know, don't apologize for how you feel. It's perfectly valid. It's perfectly okay to feel what you're feeling right now. You don't have to say, I'm sorry. You don't have to feel bad because you're feeling down or you're having a stressful time. You know, just it's okay to be right where you're at and we're going to, we're going to support you right where you're at.

Winnie (09:37)
Yeah. Yeah. No, don't. Yeah.

Absolutely.

Yeah, absolutely.

Mary (09:57)
I think that's what that, you know, some of the safe environment and not having to defend yourself because I think that's our instinct is to kind of be like, ⁓ I shouldn't feel that way or I'm going to be a burden or I'm going to bring everybody down. Or so I think that that's, that's what that makes me think of when you mentioned that.

Winnie (10:03)
Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Absolutely. mean, there's been several times and, you know, team meetings where a team member has said, you know, I'm sorry, you know, my updates a downer. And that's like, no, you know, yes, the person before you might've had a happy update and we're happy for them, but that doesn't mean we can't hold space for you are having a shitty week. And we're here here for you for that. Another thing with that is, you know, sometimes

Mary (10:22)
Yeah.

Yeah.

Absolutely.

Winnie (10:41)
people need encouragement to take like a mental health day. We're big believers and if you, you know, taking a mental health day and I've gone on a call with someone who was trying to push through it. And I was like, no, you need, we'll handle, I'll handle this. What else do you have on your schedule for today? Okay, let's reschedule that because you are obviously trying your best and sometimes your best is that you need to take some time to recenter and

Mary (10:44)
Yep.

Winnie (11:05)
be able to focus on yourself. And that's okay because that's, we want our team to be able to show up as their best authentic selves. And sometimes that looks like holding that space for them to go and take a day and just not be okay.

Mary (11:13)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah, absolutely.

Winnie (11:21)
And I will also say empathy doesn't necessarily mean agreement. Yeah.

Mary (11:26)
I think a lot of people get confused because I think they think if you're

empathetic with somebody you have to agree with them. Yeah.

Winnie (11:31)
I don't know,

which is not true because no two people 100 % agree on 100 % of everything. That's what makes us all so unique is we all have our individual thoughts and ideas and feelings. But what empathy does mean is creating that space where people can be themselves, can bring their separate ideas and it be okay.

Mary (11:37)
Mm-hmm.

Winnie (11:54)
to just be able to come and be who they are and have their own thoughts and feelings and emotions and be unique and know that they're not going to be met with things that complicate those feelings or whatever they're going through.

Mary (12:06)
Mm-hmm.

Absolutely. And I think that's a great point. So kind of circling back on that to gratitude, mean, yeah, it's a I think we all probably get tired of the I'm grateful for posts and be, you know, we feel like this pressure to be grateful more this time of year. Yeah. Yeah. You have to have an itemized list of everything you're grateful for. And I think that that's a lot of pressure.

Winnie (12:21)
Yeah, yeah, right now you have to be super grateful tomorrow or today or whatever the day is. Yeah.

Mary (12:33)
to just, because a lot of people don't feel grateful around the holidays. They feel stress, there's trauma, there's family stuff, there's past memories or the loss of a loved one. There's a lot of things that can really make this time of year challenging, but I think that's where it comes into making gratitude something that you practice every day. So it's not all crammed into one week of the year. It's really bringing gratitude to the workplace, noticing people's quiet efforts.

Winnie (12:36)
Listen. Yeah, it's stressful and grief. Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Mary (13:01)
like the people who work a little bit longer or always offer to help and answer questions or always very supportive, know, noticing those things, saying thank you for the, you know, the emotional labor that people put into what they do because, you know, it's, we do a lot of communication with clients and talking to people and sometimes it's very stressful and it's a lot to put yourself out there emotionally all the time and be on and try to be, you know, happy and

Winnie (13:21)
Mm-hmm.

Mary (13:28)
connect with people and it can be emotionally draining. Say thank you for that effort that people put in and acknowledge people like in our positives and wins where we acknowledge people who have done outstanding that week or have gone the extra mile. Really let people know that you see what they're doing and you recognize that. ⁓ And like you said, we always offer flexibility and

Winnie (13:48)
Yes.

Mary (13:52)
grace during difficult times. know, we offer sick time, we offer floating holidays, we offer just rearrange your schedule. If you want to work Saturday instead of working, you know, Monday, that's okay. If that's what you need to do to get through, like you said, to get through those difficult times when someone comes to us and I'm just trying to get through it, I can do it. Now, I know you've had to tell me that multiple times myself because I'm a horrible practitioner of this rule.

Winnie (14:01)
Yeah.

Mary (14:19)
⁓ taking care of yourself. I suck at it. So Winnie's always like, you're taking the day off. I'm locking off your schedule for you right now. And I'm, ⁓ okay. So, I mean, that's how we take care of each other though. And that really shows that we care about each other, not just as people who are earning us money or people who are doing work for us, but we care about the humans that, yeah, that we are taking care of.

Winnie (14:24)
Ha

You

Absolutely.

Yeah.

Who they are. Yeah.

Mary (14:44)
And I think that when people feel that value, you know, I think that that allows, you know, like one of our people went through some really hard stuff, you know, and I think whenever we support them like that, that gives them the ability to navigate those times a little better because they're not having to worry about work. They're not having to worry about what people are going to say at work or their work performance or are we going to get onto them or, you know, and I think that it's also contagious because when you talk

Winnie (14:59)
Mm-hmm.

Hell yeah.

Mary (15:11)
about somebody in a positive way, makes you feel good and you want that feeling more. And then other people want that feeling of, you know, being helpful and being kind. And it's a, just a good feeling. So I think that if we model that, then, you know, our team starts to just fall, follow suit, you know.

Winnie (15:17)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah, I also think the more you do it, the easier it gets. So you brought up the wins and I love positives wins. I'm like, yesterday I was on there twice adding stuff for positives and wins next Monday. Cause I was like, if I don't write it down, I'll forget that person will forget. And for me, that positive wins is so much easier than like on Thanksgiving when it's like, okay, everyone go around the circle and say what you're grateful for. And I'm like, I get like locked up. I'm like,

Mary (15:32)
Absolutely.

You

Forget it.

What?

Winnie (15:55)
how do I put

everything I'm grateful, what if I say something and I leave somebody else out? Like my brain goes a thousand miles a minute when, and it's just like my family, like even just close family. I'm like, how do I, how do I summarize this? But I know that every week we're putting in, I don't think there has been a single week where we haven't had at least one positive to win in as long as I've been here, ⁓ which I think is wonderful. And I think that, you know, like you said,

Mary (16:01)
Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Winnie (16:22)
it's contagious and I think the more you do it, the easier it gets when you kind of just build it in. It's just like a natural thing that starts to come out rather than a pressure like say everything you're grateful for in this exact moment.

Mary (16:34)
Mm-hmm,

absolutely.

Winnie (16:36)
Really, so keeping that contagious, keeping it going, I do think empathy is the best tool to have to keep that going, to keep that gratitude going year round. So that when things get tense, whether it's culturally, politically, personally, what have you, you can use that empathy to...

Mary (16:44)
Yeah.

Winnie (16:56)
keep things moving forward, keep things grounded in gratitude, especially as a leader or even just as a member of the team. You can't be passive about it. You have to be present about it. You have to be very intentional about it. And I will say, at some point, I feel like it becomes like second nature, but you still have to make sure you're showing up that way.

Mary (17:02)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

Winnie (17:20)
even when you're having a hard day, which can be hard, but sometimes that empathy is saying, you know what, I am having a hard time, but I also hear that you're having a hard time. So let's go through it together instead of, I'm just gonna sit here and suffer in silence. I think that's a part of the empathy is also being vulnerable about how you're doing.

Mary (17:32)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

Winnie (17:41)
And also recognizing that you might not fully understand what they're going through. Something like, you know, I don't fully understand your experience, but I believe you and I'm here for you. And what support do you need? That's, I think that's a big one we use is how can we support you? What kind of support do you need? What can we do to make tomorrow or today a little bit easier? Or someone like you mentioned earlier, them explaining, you know, apologizing for something. You don't have to explain.

Mary (17:48)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

Winnie (18:08)
You can even just come in and say, today is rough. You don't have to explain to it. That's okay. That's perfectly fine. We're still here for you, for wherever you're at right now. And I think that empathy, those, you know, those phrases of how can I support you? I don't understand, but I'm here. You don't have to explain, but we support you. I think it has led to us having a team that

Mary (18:11)
Yeah.

Winnie (18:32)
talks about their careers. mean, in quarterly meetings, people will be like, I'm worried about XYZ. And we're like, all right, let's make a plan. Let's talk about it. What's going on? I think it's led to our team being really connected, no matter what's happening. I mean, I think one testament to that is like when you bought the business a year ago, the whole team

Mary (18:40)
Mm-hmm.

Winnie (18:56)
really stayed together and there was, kind of kept thriving and growing even when you took over. And I think we've heard a lot over the past year, people being like, wow, normally teams really shift when it's bought. you know, not that that was a conflict by any means. We were very happy when you bought it, but there was, it was turbulence. It was change. was. Yeah. Yeah. Especially me. am. Nope. Stay the same. but.

Mary (19:00)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

No, yeah, but I, yeah, but yeah, it was change and nobody likes change. Nobody, yeah.

Winnie (19:22)
everybody stayed connected and we were able to add and add to team members who just fit in so great. And I think it's also led to some of our team being able to identify when they need support better ⁓ or identify when they need to have some kind of change in their system. I think

Mary (19:28)
Fit.

Mm-hmm.

Winnie (19:45)
because they know they can say, this is not working or what is this? And that doesn't always mean we can say, hey, we can like completely take that off your plate. But sometimes that means, okay, let's talk through processes, reevaluate, work through solutions together. And I think that's all part of what makes our team so strong. Because also our team is full of empathy. We have a team full of empathetic people.

Mary (19:56)
Let's do some reevaluation, yeah.

Winnie (20:09)
And I absolutely love it.

Mary (20:12)
I do too. And I think that we're really lucky. think that, but I know that that's not always going to be the case when people work with a team. We have a pretty small team. We're pretty intentional in how we hire. But I mean, there is that question. Do you hire people that match your value, your moral compass, your stance on things, your, or do you hire people who have a different,

Winnie (20:16)
yeah. Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Mary (20:37)
maybe value things differently. And I think that's a tough question as a team, as a leadership team, because it's like, want to maintain the piece. You want to maintain that level of comfort because it is something that we really value. But I think it really depends. I think that there's a way to hire people that have that

Winnie (20:50)
Mm-hmm.

Mary (21:05)
value system that is non-negotiable, but may have different perspectives. Because I know that some of our team, we do have different perspectives. We have different perspectives about things that go on in the world and the way we approach the holidays. We have different perspectives, but I think... Go ahead.

Winnie (21:16)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah. And I think that

I was just gonna say, I think that diversity is important. you know, how, you know, no one of us has the exact same practices or thoughts. And I think that can be really important.

Mary (21:26)
I do too.

Yeah. So

I think the key here and what I keep in mind when we're hiring people is to hire for that moral alignment. People who value, you know, the empathy that we have, the team atmosphere that we like to build, that respect that we like to have on our teams. Hire somebody that mirrors those values, but don't hire someone just for the sameness of thought. You know, it's okay if you have different thoughts, different ideas. Like when I was

Winnie (21:59)
Yes.

Mary (22:03)
I love to use the example of when I was hired and I came in with some SEO knowledge and we butted heads constantly because I was like, I'm doing it my way. And when he's like, that's not the way we do it. And I'm like, but I'm doing it my way. so, but we learned how to work together and yeah, exactly.

Winnie (22:03)
Absolutely.

That's not the thing. ⁓

Yeah, we're together. Yeah, because we had the same values and goals in the end. our

thought processes were different.

Mary (22:26)
Yeah,

and we just went about things a different way, but when we learned to work together, we actually improved, I think, both of us, you know, how we approach things and our open-mindedness. And ⁓ I do too. And I think that that's one of the things that if you hire somebody who is morally aligned with you, who is, you know, does have those values that are important and non-negotiable, but has different ideas, it can, you know, it can increase that.

Winnie (22:29)
Yeah. Yes. Okay. Yeah.

think we both grew from that.

Mm-hmm.

Mary (22:50)
adaptability, can require you to work together to solve problems or give you a different perspective. It can expand your, you know, your cultural, you know, knowledge. can expand your, your view of the world. And I think that the key is, even if you disagree, is to do it kindly, do it thoughtfully, you know, collaborate, built on that trust that you have that

I know this is a safe place. I know we all value the same things as far as respect, empathy, know, speaking my mind. And, you know, so look for that cohesion in your team when you hire. That's okay. But don't be afraid of adding some diversity of thought or some, you know, some complexity to your team just because that really can...

Winnie (23:27)
Mm-hmm.

Mary (23:37)
grow your mindset, that can grow your perspective and that can, you know, become your organization's biggest strength. I think that some of our greatest ideas come from people who look at things differently than you or I do and are like, this would be a great service or this would be a great way to approach this problem or, you know, and I think, and it's not always easy. It's not because I'm stuck in my ways. I'm very stubborn. I don't like change and

Winnie (23:45)
Absolutely.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

No. Yeah. Listen.

Mary (24:05)
You know, I struggle with this. so like, you know, with Ed coming in, my husband coming in and changing things, I know. So I have to really be I have to really think a different way. I have to really try to be more mindful of how I approach that. And, you know, because he just has a different perspective. His brain works in a different way. And.

Winnie (24:11)
trying to change my spreadsheets.

No!

Mary (24:29)
there has to be a middle ground that we come to. And I think we're getting there. I think it's a process and it's not always easy, but if you are committed to working together, I think you really can grow from having some diversity of thoughts, some different perspectives.

Winnie (24:43)
Mm-hmm.

Absolutely. And I think as, you know, leaders of a team...

leading through those hard times is a telltale sign of how things are going to go because being a leader of any kind, when things are easy going, smooth sailing, those are the easy times. Those are like the little, I can sit back and just kind of be here. Yeah. And then, and then the challenging thing hits, whether that's, you know, a budding of heads or thoughts, like you gave that example earlier when we

Mary (24:59)
Yeah.

Cruise control. Yeah.

Winnie (25:16)
butted heads when you first started. Listen, that was a trying time, but we got through it really well and we improved and I think even the company even benefited from that, because we had ideas come out of that. I think that leadership, that empathy, that gratitude really shines through when you're

Mary (25:16)
You

Absolutely.

Mm-hmm.

Winnie (25:35)
your team is struggling with whatever that may be. Maybe they're grieving. I know that when I lost my father, having the team that we have was a huge support in making it through that because I wasn't worried. I had empathy, I had support, and it made that process easier. And I know that we try to show up for our team members like that when they have things that they're grieving.

Mary (25:48)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

Winnie (26:01)
or struggling with, or when two team members, not necessarily have conflict, but they have opposing ideas and we gotta get to that solution, being able to navigate, here's the thought processes, let's find that middle ground. And that is very much not a seasonal tool. That's not just to be used around the holidays. That is one to make a sustainable, well-working team all year long.

Mary (26:08)
Yeah.

Winnie (26:25)
So I kind of want to put this last kind of idea out there of as we head into the holiday season, as we are going through Thanksgiving, I invite you to consider who on your team might need a check-in. And it might not be the person telling you that something's wrong. It might be the person who hasn't, yeah, those individuals need that check-in.

Mary (26:42)
Mm-hmm.

always has their stuff together.

Winnie (26:53)
⁓ Or maybe someone who just hasn't given an update in a while and they've kind of put themselves into the background Do they need just a quiet check-in like a hey, I've been thinking about you How are things going do you need any support? I encourage you to think of an extra time every day where you can give a word of thanks

Mary (27:03)
Mm-hmm.

Winnie (27:14)
and not in the, you oh, thanks for completing this huge, project. Because those, those are great. I'm not saying not do that, but like the little one of, um, Hey, thanks for going on and handling that or doing something unexpected. Or I'm like, we have coworking hours, you know, thanks for coming to coworking today. Even though it's not a requirement, thank them for kind of showing up and doing all of that. Um, are there any ways you can model empathy a little more clearly?

Mary (27:17)
Right.

Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Winnie (27:40)
this week or next week. Make it a little bit louder than normal. Also, how can you make sure to keep practicing seeing these values? One, during the holidays, because like you said, it can be harder to have these during the holidays because it's chaotic. And you're also, oh my gosh, my family's coming in. Oh my gosh, I need to do X, Y, Z. And I've got, know, deadlines are harder because...

Mary (27:45)
Mm-hmm.

Right. ⁓

Mm-hmm.

Winnie (28:02)
We love being able to take some days off, but it also makes getting all your deadlines done in time more hectic. So keeping your values, that empathy, that gratitude, all of that alive through the holidays. But then there's like that like January slump where it's like, okay, we made it through the holidays. deflated, I'm worn out. What can you do even when you're deflated and worn out and just

Mary (28:14)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah, I'm deflated.

Winnie (28:26)
ready to be like, just don't talk to me for a week so I can like.

introvert for a week, how can you still show those values during that time? And that might mean that it's a little less loud those weeks, but still try to have something in there because you want it to be an all the time practice, not just a, when you're put on the spot at Thanksgiving dinner and asked what you're grateful for, you want it all the time.

Mary (28:31)
Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Absolutely. I love those questions. I think those are good, like litmus tests, you know, to see how you're doing and are you really making an effort to lead, you know, with empathy, to lead with that connection and to really build those relationships.

Winnie (29:03)
Mm-hmm.

It can be so easy when you're a leader to just focus on the gratitude and empathy for others. Make sure to give it to yourself. Make sure to have empathy for yourself because it is, things are hard. Things are hard in the world right now. Holiday seasons are hard.

Mary (29:13)
Mm-hmm. good point.

Winnie (29:23)
Whatever is hard in your life right now, give yourself empathy for that and have gratitude for yourself. Have gratefulness for yourself. I know it can sometimes feel silly, but tell yourself what you're grateful for on the things that you're doing and the things that you've done this year.

Mary (29:37)
I mean, even if it's just I'm grateful, I'm proud of myself for getting out of bed today, even though I really didn't want to, you know, some days. Yeah. ⁓

Winnie (29:41)
Yeah, listen, days that's what I'm grateful for.

I made I made it to my desk. We're doing good. Yep. Absolutely.

Mary (29:47)
I got my computer turned on. Whoa! You know, you I know there's you

have you do. And I think that's a great point because it isn't just about saying thank you to other people. It's about embracing that for yourself as well. Because if you're not showing yourself that same grace, it's hard to give it to other people, you know, sometimes because you're going to get worn out. You're going to get tired. You're going to be exhausted and defeated. So you need to give yourself that space. I love that. You know, and it's

Winnie (29:58)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Mary (30:14)
You know, our business is SEO, but we always say we're family first. We're a family first company. We love to take care of our employees. We love to make them, I mean, without our team, we wouldn't have a business. We wouldn't have the great customer service that we have. We wouldn't have the clients that we have. I mean, and those are things to be eternally grateful for. And that's another reason to build those relationships. know, leadership is really about connection.

especially in times of uncertainty, especially when things are chaotic in the world and people need to feel grounded in some way. A lot of times people don't get that at home. So if we can provide that focal point, that grounding for employees so that this is one last thing they have to worry about. They don't have to worry about their work environment. They don't have to worry about getting in trouble or showing up every day or being happy all the time. They can just

Winnie (30:46)
yeah.

Mary (31:11)
come and be themselves. I mean, think if we can take that off the table, that really adds to the, it's like a benefit. It's almost like a benefit of working here. And I think that gratitude and empathy are, you have to have those to survive in this world. If you can't find anything to be grateful for, my goodness.

Winnie (31:21)
Absolutely.

Especially.

I was especially in the helping professional field where that empathy can drain quick when you're having it a lot. So you gotta really dig deep and find it. That was, yeah.

Mary (31:35)
Mmm.

Yes, absolutely. when we

give, like our clients are mainly therapists and they're listening, they're being empathetic, they're being active listeners. I'm sure by the end of the day, it's like, if I have to say thank you or be nice to one more person, mate, just snap. And sometimes I feel like that and I'm not even a therapist. Yeah, it is.

Winnie (32:03)
Yeah. Empathy fatigue is real.

Mary (32:11)
So that's where that, I think that's where that, you know, that giving yourself that grace and that understanding and being empathetic with yourself, you know, and setting, you know, some boundaries and guidelines for things and remembering the little things that you can be grateful for, even in those chaotic moments, even when you're feeling drained, you know, even when life is just really crap, you know, I think that, you know, giving...

Being able to provide your team with that safety, that space and support they need to thrive all year long is something that if more businesses focused on, know, not just being grateful at Thanksgiving and focused on that all year round, I think that we would have a lot happier people, a lot happier, know, people happier in their jobs.

Winnie (32:47)
Mm-hmm.

I

Mary (32:54)
instead of just looking at the numbers. And I know that's a, you know, it's not just a quick fix. You can't just snap your fingers and make it work. But we see time and time again that the companies who really focus on their people, who focus on building those connections, they just perform better. They have better results. They have better customer service. They have better, you know, they just do better. Yeah, absolutely. So I really just, you know, want to stress that

Winnie (33:10)
See

Work-life balance.

Mary (33:19)
Just practice building those relationships year round. It will pay you back in spades. You will receive so much, not only financially or from a business perspective, but just it will fill your cup. It will fill your cup emotionally and it will make you feel better about the world if you can find the gratitude and empathy and connect with other people on a daily basis.

Winnie (33:24)
Mm-hmm.

Well said.

Mary (33:44)
after all that, I just want to say to everybody, if you celebrate Thanksgiving, have a happy Thanksgiving. If you don't celebrate Thanksgiving, enjoy your day off. Rest, relax. I hope you're, yeah, have a great weekend. I hope that, you know, this provided some, you know.

Winnie (33:54)
Yeah.

Have a weekend.

Mary (34:02)
ideas for how to build team relations and connect with your team year round. And I hope that your holiday season is as peaceful as it can be, as restful as it can be. And thank you for the time to listen to us today.