“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.
Lisa Goulet
I’ve always enjoyed working with and volunteering to help seniors. Then, when I lost my mom unexpectedly at Christmas 2023, it cemented my purpose. She had a wonderfully kind heart for others, and I feel that I’m honoring her when I’m helping people with their homes. Read More>>
Paige Robbins
I feel things deeply and with emotion. Growing up I either had an opportunity to speak freely or wait until speaking was an option. Absorbing others emotions that weren’t mine became a way of life .At some point, I decided to stay open instead of shutting down, even when it would’ve been easier to harden. Read More>>
Deborah Williams
What were the conditions that allowed you to develop your empathy? This question was selected because it embodied many of the previous questions in this questionnaire that deeply resonated with me, as it reflects the many life and professional experiences that have shaped who I am today. Read More>>
Suky Pedemonte
The last time I felt true empathy was while serving others. Joining my husband, and local church community on a mission trip to Guatemala, reshaped my heart in ways I never expected. Read More>>
Lilly Diaz
In my childhood, empathy was shown in unique ways that one might not expect a child to learn from. I was raised in a single immigrant parent household–food insecurity, housing insecurity, navigating as a first-generation Latine-American were a few of the worlds I had to navigate as a child. Read More>>
Dr. Taylor Thorpe
I believe empathy is both an inheritance and a choice. My grandmother was my first teacher in this. She was the personification of selflessness. Although she passed when I was only ten, her essence stayed with me, teaching me early on that looking out for others is not a chore, but a way of being. Read More>>
Kelly Mosa
My empathy grew from living between cultures and languages. When I moved from Taiwan to Minnesota, I often found myself in situations where I could understand what was happening around me, but expressing myself fully took extra effort. Being in that position made me slow down, listen more carefully, and pay attention to what people were feeling — not just what they were saying. Read More>>
Jeremy Ray Smolik
Interesting question on how empathy is developed with different people. The first instance I can think of is when I was maybe 7, I got a blowgun from someone (shoots darts), and when I tried hitting a squirrel with it I remember it stuck in it’s hip, and I felt it’s pain instantly. I cried for days thinking of how it must have felt. Read More>>
Rae Can
Developing my empathy came from a journey of self-mastery. I’ve always naturally pick up on everyone’s energy, and for a long time, it would overwhelm me. I’d feel drained, trying to carry what wasn’t mine. The turning point was learning to know my own energy so intimately that I could instantly recognize what belongs to me and what doesn’t. Read More>>
PHENOM Hale
I was born in the infamous Cabrini Green Projects in Chicago, Illinois. I grew up battling racism, poverty, disinvestment, Father absenteeism, prison-pipeline kidnapping of my uncles and cousins, a degraded education system, and over-populated slums just to find some sort of peace. The peace came when I realized all of the things my family did to keep me safe. Read More>>
Evan Gering
The foundation of my empathy was formed very early, through years of volunteering at the Motion Picture & Television Fund (MPTF). I began volunteering there at nine years old, working in the activities department alongside senior volunteers and residents in long-term care. Many of the residents’ primary social interaction came from these daily activities, which created space for real, unhurried conversation. I learned quickly that presence mattered, taking the time to listen, to let stories unfold at their own pace, and to meet people where they were, both emotionally and physically. Read More>>
