Starting 2025 with Empathy: How Leaders Can Support Their Teams After the Holidays
By Ben Williams, Co-founder and CEO
As we step into the new year, many employees have just returned from an extended Christmas break. While some returned to their desks on January 2nd, the real rhythm of work often begins the following Monday, as the buzz of 2025 takes full force.
Morning routines will kick into gear. School runs will become frantic. Roads, buses, and trains will fill to capacity as millions make their way to workplaces across the country, ready to face a new year.
Some will arrive with enthusiasm, excited to pick up where they left off. Others will step into the office carrying the mental baggage of 2024, shoulders heavy with anxiety or a sense of dread, bracing themselves for another spin on the corporate treadmill.
In cars or crowded trains, many employees will find their minds racing with thoughts about work, life, and the future. These swirling emotions often set the tone for the weeks and months ahead.
But here’s the reality: those emotions don’t simply vanish when we step into the workplace. Whether it’s optimism, exhaustion, or quiet dread, these feelings come with us, hidden behind polite smiles, masked in the hum of busy offices, or muted during Teams calls.
For leaders, colleagues, and peers, this moment presents both an opportunity and a responsibility. Can we take the time to truly notice how those around us are feeling? Can we look beyond the deadlines and OKRs to ask, “How are you?”, and mean it?
The Emotional Landscape of January
The numbers tell a stark story. In January 2024 alone, 1.89 million people reached out to mental health services in the UK, 1.2 million being working adults. These are not just statistics. They’re the stories of colleagues who may sit near you or the voices on your daily calls, often juggling challenges we may know nothing about.
This data shows that January is one of the most emotionally challenging months for employees. Post-holiday fatigue, financial pressures, and the looming weight of personal and professional goals can compound, leading to disengagement, stress, and burnout.
For leaders striving to build resilient, high-performing teams in 2025, it’s critical to recognise that emotions, both positive and negative, are the fuel for that performance. Optimism and energy can drive success, but unresolved anxiety or disengagement can quietly erode it.
Emotions as the Catalyst for High Performance
When we think about high-performing teams, we often focus on metrics like productivity, innovation, and meeting goals. But behind every KPI is a person, and behind every person is a complex web of emotions.
Our research consistently shows that the teams achieving the highest levels of performance are those where emotional well-being is prioritised. Managers who lead with empathy and organisations that foster trust and open communication see measurable improvements in engagement, resilience, and productivity.
It’s a simple equation: when employees feel seen, valued, and supported, they’re more likely to perform at their best.
What Leaders Can Do in 2025
As we navigate the start of a new year, here’s a challenge for leaders, managers, and colleagues alike:
Check in: Take a moment to genuinely ask your team how they’re doing. Not just in passing, but with intention and curiosity.
Listen actively: Create spaces where employees feel safe sharing their thoughts and listen without judgment or rushing to solutions.
Foster empathy: Remember that every individual’s journey is unique, and meeting them where they are can make all the difference.
Build a culture of care: Embed empathy into the DNA of your workplace. Make well-being and resilience as much of a priority as the bottom line.
At Loopin, we work with organisations to equip leaders with the tools they need to foster emotional resilience and drive high performance. By combining AI-powered insights with practical leadership development, we help create workplaces where employees feel supported and thrive.
The Year of Empathy
So, can 2025 be the year of empathy? Can it be the year we go beyond the corporate slog and focus on the individuals driving the mission?
Because beyond the deadlines and deliverables, we’re all people navigating our way through the chaos. And it’s in those moments of connection, care, and understanding that we create the foundation for resilience and performance.
Want to learn more about how Loopin can support your teams? Hit this link and book a call with one of our team.
