There’s at least one on every team, that person who is highly sensitive. The sights, sounds, smells, and environment that everyone else seems not to notice, the highly-sensitive person does. They’re the first to notice the tension in the room and when there is a member of the team that just isn’t happy. And for a lot of these same reasons, they are often hard to fit into a team because they’re usually the lone voice of dissent on many environmental issues every business and team faces.
“If it’s fine for everyone else, why can’t it be good enough for them?!?!”, is the outcry you’ll sometimes hear when the Highly-senstive person (HSP) let’s the team know that there is something not quite right, that something is bothering them. Often it seems as though they themselves may not know what’s wrong, it just doesn’t feel right. Never the less, having a Highly Sensitive Person on your team is a life-saver, assisting the leader to know when something is going wrong and when there are misalignments in staffing, environment and attitude. If leaders know who their HSP’s are, and how to best use their gifts and talents, they are an enormous blessing to whatever team they are a part of. (Here’s a test to find out if you’re a HSP)
Here are just a few ideas for handling HSP’s
Embrace the HSP
Non-Profit Leaders, and leaders in general, should embrace the HSP and their gift of sensitivity to environment to help create better outcomes, team dynamics, and a healthier work place. Just like other gifts and talents, this gift has a tremendous positive side and can be helpful in ferroting out problems that others wouldn’t have noticed, so they can be solved and dealt with. HSP’s are the canary in the coal mine for non-profit leaders, they’ll tell you when things are wrong long before anyone else will.
Encourage the HSP
Highly sensitive people recognize when they’re not embraced, because, well…, they’re highly sensitive. They know that they’re opinions are not always welcome and that they’re often the only one so they need the encouragement and support of their leader and team. Just as you would publically encourage other gifts and tasks, do so with the HSP.
Study the HSP
Many people don’t know a lot about Highly Sensitive People so they don’t know how to handle them in the workplace. Elaine Aron has written the definitive book on the subject, The Highly Sensitive Person, and I recommend it to all those who believe they may be a HSP, or who work with one.
Are you a Highly Sensitive Person? If so, what challenges have you had to overcome from being an HSP? Have you ever worked with an HSP and have anything to add to the list? Let me know.
David Curry
