I have another one: working with people I enjoy, respect and truly understand.

Many business people and entrepreneurs are “kind” and I love to interact with all of them. I have a special understanding of the gifts and challenges of those who are either introverts, intuitive, reserved, and/or sensitive (attuned to others’ feelings and thoughts).

If you’re wondering about the website title “Where Business Meets Spirit”, it came from a conversation with someone who described how I work, sensing a person’s true personality, wishes and spirit while always strategizing about  the practicality of getting results.

The details about what I do on this page . Glad you’re here!

• The special gifts they bring to business
• And the pitfalls they have to avoid

One of those pitfalls is their vulnerability to burnout especially if they are in a helping profession such as healing or coaching. Here’s how they get setup:

They have grown up feeling unsafe from over-exposure and since they are usually caring, they have a need to make the world safer and better for some people.

A sensitive person is also usually highly conscientious, reliable and loyal and finds it hard to let other people down when her attempts to “save the world” fall short, as they inevitably must.

Couple that with a few of the sensitives’ less desirable traits such as perfectionism and wish to please, and you have a perfect storm for burnout.

The way out is to turn away from following idealism and instead turn in the direction of joy and creativity. The burnout candidate must ask himself what would please him and to find that, he must get out of his head and use his body as his spiritual guide and feeling barometer.

You can hear the rest of the conversation by going to this link ; a lot was packed in less than 40 minutes (I always try to keep my teleseminars as short as possible since we’re all so busy).

She had never looked the topic of “sensitive people in business” before but as an introvert, she had a lot of experience to share. (The majority of sensitive people are introverts, though not all introverts are sensitive).

Being online running her own business was a perfect solution for her as it allowed her the independence she craved, time flexibility and shielded her from having to deal with people face-to-face.

When I asked her about the bane of most introverted business owners’  life, marketing, she explained that social media had changed everything for her because she’s most comfortable with the written word and was able to connect with people freely through her blog posts and tweets. It works so well with her that many people that know her through social media may not realize that she’s quite an introvert.

That strategy works so well for her it even removed her discomfort about going to live events. You know how it is when you go to an event and feel nervous about meeting new people, whether you’ll feel out of place of included, etc. Well Denise solved the problem by tweeting ahead of time: “Who’s going to be at XYZ event?” and gets comfortable with some fellow attendees in advance. No concerns about not knowing anyone; brilliant!

The full interview is 30 minutes long and you can find it at: http://instantteleseminar.com/?eventid=9895629

Most sensitives would tell you that it’s been difficult functioning in our mainly action-oriented, fast-paced and attention-seeking culture and business world. For example, sensitive persons would tend to:

• Find confrontations difficult since they feel their impact many more times than another person, and since business often involves negotiating, that places them at a disadvantage
• Take on a protective role as leaders which is a great quality unless the leader ends up sacrificing too much in the process. That happened when a manager allocated himself a 0% salary increase 5 years in a row because he felt his staff was underpaid and wanted to do what he could to remedy the injustice.
• Misread other people’s meanings since a sensitive spots small changes in facial expressions and voice intonations. The customer may not be as angry as you think…or angry at all!
• Undersell because they think they portray emotion or enthusiasm but the listener may not “get it” because the communication is too subtle for the average person.
• Be drained because their nervous system is on constant alert, and because they have to deal with not only their own emotions but also the ones they pick up from people around them.

As you can see, sensitive people need tools to handle these challenges and maximize the unique opportunities their nature provides.

And I mean something else besides being told to “get a thicker skin”, or “not care as much” or “get a less responsible job”.

Hum….as I said in my reply to a comment to September 3rd’s post, I feel a personal mission brewing and am considering creating something to support sensitive people in business. What do you think; do you see a need for it?

Traditionally, that trait is viewed as a negative, as something that must be overcome. But that point of view overlooks that being sensitive is also a gift.

Here are 5 of the ways in which sensitivity serves a business owner or manager well:

• A sensitive person tends to have a higher level of empathy, which means that he will treat people as he wants to be treated. As a result, he’ll be trusted by his employees, peers, and clients.

• Being highly attuned to other people’s reaction, the sensitive executive will be able to factor the human element in her decisions. For example, she would foresee that an announcement about the purchase of another company will create uncertainty amongst the staff about their jobs and take steps to reassure them while still being completely honest. As a result, she’ll improve both morale and productivity.

• Having their antenna up and naturally scanning their environment, sensitive people will see faster than others the undercurrents of situations. They make great advisors in negotiations for example.

• Sensitivity is a great asset for teachers, trainers, and coaches, because you will know what your clients think before they can verbalize for themselves, and will become renowned for their ability to help people clarify their confusion.

• Sensitive persons are tuned-in to other realms besides the action-oriented physical reality, so they tend to have high intuition and out-of-the-box thinking. Not bad traits in a quick-changing economy requiring creativity to survive.

Now we all know that sensitivity is not something that’s traditionally been prized in a resume. There are many reasons for this, some valid and some not, and I’ll go over five of the downsides of the trait in the next post.

People who are more sensitive than average have interesting opportunities and challenges when it comes to running a business (and being in the workplace in general).

First, let me define what I mean; you are “sensitive” if you have the following characteristics:

1. People’s reactions affect you more than average
2. You are highly attuned to other people’s feelings and energy
3. You feel other people’s emotions, not just your own

That is not the same as the negative stereotype of being an over-reactive drama queen (or king) with no backbone.

Being sensitive is not a character fault, a deficiency, or something to graduate away from when you’ve got your act together.

It is a gift with a double-edged sword, especially in a fast-paced results-oriented society like ours, so it’s crucial for a sensitive person to learn how to manage their gift properly.

That then leads to some opportunities, which I’ll cover in the next post.