Bridging the Gap Between Caring About and Caring For with Jen Marr

Jen's life changed drastically when she found herself assisting in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook shooting, and four months later, she was nearing the finish line when the Boston Marathon bombing occurred. In the wake of those tragedies, Jen found that while so many people said they cared, those affected did not feel cared for. Since then, she has dedicated her time to bridging the gap between caring and feeling cared for and has developed a system to train people how to connect better. In this episode, Jen Marr, author, founder and CEO of Inspiring Comfort, and trauma survivor, explains how leaders can cultivate and understand the power of making real, human connections. Listen in to learn the skills needed to build empathic cultures to rehumanize not just our workplaces, but our families and communities.

Guest Info

Jen Marr, Author, Founder and CEO - Inspiring Comfort

Jen Marr is a Speaker, Author, and Founder and CEO of Inspiring Comfort. She has utilized her 30 years of experience in business, leadership development, and the healthcare industry to research, develop, and offer solutions to our current mental health crisis.

Ten years ago, Jen had a front row seat to the Sandy Hook tragedy and to the Boston Marathon bombing. She immediately began working in crisis response and recovery efforts. She saw first-hand the need for ongoing support for those who are struggling. In doing this, she realized there is a massive gap between people who are struggling and people who want to help, but don’t know how. This is when Inspiring Comfort was born.

Since then, Jen has been immersed in trauma research and developing programs that address this gap. Her work in the field of human connection has made indelible impact on the lives of countless people. She is passionate about furthering the science of human connection and has worked with researchers and thought leaders across the country to cultivate cultures of care through the critical life skill of comfort.

This movement is taking root in notable organizations including the White House Leadership Development Program, the National Suicide Lifeline, Georgetown University, Northeastern University, The New York Office of Mental Health, and the American Association of Suicidology.

 

Show Notes

Key takeaways from this episode:

  • Cultivate an empathic workplace culture based on skills rather than emotions
  • When you care for people, they will care for you
  • You don’t have to try and fix your employee’s problems but you do have to acknowledge them and strive to support them

What to listen for:

[02:39] A background formed by trauma

[06:27] Bridging the gap between caring about and caring for people

[11:27] Assessing behaviors that create barriers

[16:28] Why Gen Z is leaving the workforce

[22:54] Understanding empathy is an emotion, not a skill

[25:58] Activating hearts over minds

[34:30] Jen’s self-limiting story

[36:05] Quick questions with Jen

[40:31] Jen’s challenge to leaders for making a more human workplace

 

Additional Resources

Follow Jen Marr on Social Media

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