“Empathy is about finding echoes of another person in yourself.” – Mohsin Hamid
We believe empathy is one of the most important ingredients enabling effectiveness and so we connected with some amazing folks to ask them about the conditions that allowed them to develop into such empathic leaders.
Carla Susan Lewis
This goes way back. I recall being called an empath by a close friend at her son’s funeral.It surprised me to be characterized as such but I knew that the empathy and pain I was feeling for my friend’s devastation was different than just sympathy. Seeing her so heartbroken was acutely painful. I felt compelled to do something to take her pain away. I first experienced this kind of empathy in my twenties — only after my own house was in order. Survival needs met —emotional, material, and spiritual were conditions from which empathy for others was able to develop. Also, possessing a degree of humility and gratitude to understand that –“there but for the grace of god; go I”. Read more>>
Sebastian Ignacio Mieres Herrera
Hello First of all..! Never forget education goes first. English is not my native languaje, so I’ll do my best.
Well, I don’t know if i can talk about conditions that allowed my empathy. I think that empathy is a practice for every single day, and every single second. Under a basis question as “what if this happen to me?”
This was my first start line when i was a kid. I remember my mom telling me “What if this happens to you?” and after that everything changed forever. Read more>>
Kathleen Sarpy
Since I was a young child, I’ve always had the feeling that I was an empath, someone who was highly attuned to other people’s emotions and feelings. That has been one of my “super powers” in my life and career as I could use that skill to read a room during a presentation, address employees nonverbal and verbal cues with kindness and ultimately be a more authentic and transparent leader that valued people’s personal stories and journeys. Working in public relations for the past 32 years, I recognized that understanding the “human side” of my colleagues and clients was often just as important as understanding the fundamentals of doing my job promoting some of the world’s most recognizable brands and companies. Read more>>
Dina Riccobono
My life has definitely had its challenges. I’ve always been an empathetic person, but after a work injury caused me some pretty severe health complications and job loss and an abusive relationship, I’ve definitely changed my life outlook. Read more>>
Verta Maloney
Growing up and getting to exist as a Black woman in this lifetime are where my empathy is rooted. My lived experience as part of the global majority in a world that is systematically designed to marginalize me allows me to understand the world from multiple perspectives. Ever since I was a little girl I wanted things to be fair & just & kind and as I grew I came to understand that the world is just not like that — yet — and in so many ways it just made me more determined to live a life in pursuit of these things for all of us, even if only in the small worlds I inhabit. Read more>>
Andres Garcia Canon
I grew up in a small, financially struggling town in southern Spain with an unemployment rate close to 50% and minimal opportunities, so I observed firsthand the challenges faced by marginalized groups. My father had a steady job as a middle school teacher, while my mother had to stay at home and take care of my brother and me due to societal gender expectations. However, she never stopped striving to improve our lives, earning many certifications and eventually working at the employment office helping others secure jobs. Her resilience and determination made a lasting impression on me and gave me a profound responsibility to help others. Read more>>
Sarai D.
Empathy in today’s world is a superpower. There are so many people that lack this one quality and it’s the main driver to why there is so much division and hate in this world. It feels like as the years go on, the hate and disagreements within one another increases. Why is that? Why is it so hard for someone to put themselves in the other person’s situation, sit back, and understand what they may be going through? Instead, there is this: ‘dog eat dog world’ or ‘every man for himself’ mentality. Read more>>
Samuel Adaramola
I’m a first-gen Nigerian raised by a mother who never turned away someone in need—no matter what. If somebody needed a place to stay, she made sure our home was open, and that often came at the expense of my own comfort. Our house became a stopping point for new Nigerian immigrants, extended family and friends trying to make it in the so-called “land of milk and honey.” So, growing up, I didn’t have much space or privacy—at least not in the way most kids might expect. Read more>>
Jake Huffman
I would have to say that a good portion of my empathy comes from my autism diagnosis. The common but erroneous belief when it comes to autism is that individuals with autism lack empathy. This was never the case with me. Sure, I have challenges reading body language of others and appropriately displaying my body language, but I can literally walk into a room and if someone is going through something, I will pick up on that very quickly. I might now be able to correctly communicate with others, but I can definitely “read the room.” Read more>>
