“Empathy is the starting point for creating a community and taking action. It’s the impetus for creating change.” – Max Carver
We think Max Carver got it right and that if we truly care about community building and making positive changes in the world, we have to invest in learning about how to become even more empathic as empathy is at the heart of true understanding. We asked some deeply empathic leaders to share their perspectives below.
Sveta Butko
I think my empathy really grew out of my work as a portrait photographer. To capture someone honestly, I have to feel their emotions and understand what’s happening beneath the surface, and over the years that has become one of my strengths. It first started with my own son. He wasn’t speaking for a long time, and I used to take him to animal-assisted therapy. Read More>>
Cathy Blatnik
I grew up in Bowie, Maryland in the 1970’s, when those with disabilities were hidden in institutions. There was a young man named Tommy who had Intellectual Disability, and he would walk around our neighborhood by himself. VERY unusual for the times. He would come into our garage and always ask if he could help and my dad would give him small projects to do. Read More>>
Veronika Monteith
When I look back, I think empathy has always been part of my personality – but life certainly deepened it. I grew up with a father who was physically present but emotionally distant. As a child, you don’t have the language for it, but you instinctively sense when emotional connection is missing. Read More>>
Zari Rose
Where I get my empathy from is really interesting, because I think it was always ingrained in me. Being an actress and a creative really helps me dive into different parts of the human experience that I never would have encountered in my real life. Read More>>
Siavash Jaraiedi
Empathy is born in silence, and I found mine in the quieter periods of my life, moments when I had to start over, rebuild myself, and learn how to belong to a new world. As an immigrant, I often stood slightly outside the circle, watching more than speaking. Read More>>
kisciabaleblanc
I believe that most people are born with empathy, yet their path in life determines whether they will continue to grow in the ability to connect with others on an emotional level, or their
circumstances will stunt their empathy, and thus they will become self-serving with little empathy to give… While I am not an artist per se, I grew up with musicians – Read More>>
