“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.
Riya Narayan
Founding Treats & Tunes has been the greatest teacher of empathy for me. I get the privilege of interacting with senior citizens every event, and I have learned so much from our conversations and time together. There is a special kind of wisdom you can learn senior citizens who have experienced so much of life. For me, each Treats & Tunes event is a masterclass in empathy. By singing and performing for older citizens, I am able to witness their reactions—joy, nostalgia, or even tears— which helps me understand their feelings and experiences authentically. Read more>>
Eva Souchet
I read a post that said empaths and narcissists are often shaped by the same trauma. Furthermore, an empath may feel the need to be important by helping others. This is not true empathy but rather a sign that the person needs healing themselves. On the other hand, there are individuals who become more sympathetic after experiencing hardship or trials. They become less judgmental and more considerate, which makes them empathetic. For me, I know early on that it was a gift, I just needed to learn how to establish healthy boundaries. Read more>>
Randy Greer
Extracurricular organized activities did a lot for me. Anything team oriented helped me feel for others even at a young age. Sports, food drives, choir, touring in a band, working retail, and managing a fitness center introduced me to different people, with their own circumstances. Touring and fitness did the most for me. I learned how many people felt what I felt once in my lyrics. And I learned how much we deserve to know our worth. Read more>>
Corinthiah Brown
I grew up in a single-parent home, I am the oldest of three, and my mother would always say to us “Treat others the way you want to be treated ” We were poor and she worked hard to provide for us. I remember being ostracized when I started kindergarten and experiencing racism in Salt Lake City Utah, this has an impact on my life today that reminds me of how it feels to be mistreated for no reason or reasons you have no control over and an intolerance for bullying. Read more>>
Phillip Sturm
I have had the opportunity to live and travel all around the world and the easiest way to develop your empathy is to do life with people. Have a meal, see someones favorite view point in their area, be real and open with your struggles and listen to others when they share their struggles. Life doesn’t have to be a me vs you mentality and in my experience, we are all at our best when we grow with one another. Read more>>
Elicia Hixon
My mother has six children so I grew up surrounded by many different personalities. My mother mostly raised us on her own, but my stepfather was there from before my birth and is still in our lives today. When you grow up in such a full house, empathy is inevitably a natural trait. Since my mother was our primary care provider, she worked, sometimes two or three jobs, to provide for her family. I was tasked with caring for my two youngest siblings while my mother worked. I believe this responsibility added to the evolution of my deep empathy towards others early on. Read more>>
Anthony Salazar
My journey toward understanding and developing empathy started at a young age. When my parents divorced, I had to navigate the complexities of maintaining relationships with both of them while watching my mom work multiple jobs to support me. Although I had strong relationships with my parents, the reality of our situation meant I spent much of my teenage years alone. My mom was constantly juggling work and bills to make ends meet, and that forced me to grow up faster than most. Read more>>
Rachel Blackmon
Honestly being in tune with other people’s feelings was never so much a learned thing in my experience so much as it was an inherited trait that got stronger and matured with age. The compassion that empathy requires also has aged in the same way for me, and become more of the channel through which active empathy can actually flow instead of remaining stagnant awareness of other peoples’ feelings. Read more>>
Cara Lackey
Much of my empathy comes from personal experiences, many of which were tough. As an immigrant, I had to adjust to a whole new culture. Working in a male-dominated industry where I am often the youngest person in the room has made me feel like an underdog at times. I’ve done everything from manual labor farm work to corporate jobs, and I’ve sat on both sides of the hiring table. I know what it feels like to be judged and underestimated, and those experiences have shaped me. Read more>>
