Understand others' views - Empathy is on the decline - Empathic Imagination

Empathy is fundamental to emotional intelligence - this is beyond all question.

I read an interesting study by Sarah Konrath, college students in 2010 had 40% less empathy than college students had back in 1979. 

Empathy is our ability to imagine life from another's perspective, to walk in someone else's shoes. 

And here are some ways to jumpstart your empathic imagination. 

Play a game I call five fingers perspectives and it is based on a design thinking method.

Let's do it, I tell a story that typically generates a negative judgment. For example, you're a team member and you say hi to your trainer / coach / manager in the hallway, but she walks right by you without saying a word. Your assumption is, oh, she hates me or what a snob! Now your job is to create five explanations that assume no ill will on the part of your trainer / coach / manager. 

Let's try it here, pause your reading and think of five innocent reasons that it could explain that behavior. 

So how did you do?  - Did you come up with things like ...

• well, her mind was elsewhere,
• oh, perhaps she was lost in thought of a challenging moment,
• or she was listening to someone and I haven't seen the ear-plug under her long hair,
• or she didn't hear me,
• or something else?

 Once you can quickly do this with hypothetical situations, you start playing the method in real life.

I call it five finger method as on the one hand hands do have to sides and two variants and on the other hand there is the Japanese, Chinese and Ayurveda view ...

As mentioned it is a design method - but it works for so many situations in life as well.

If we train our brains to imagine different sequenced events, it's not too much of a stretch to imagine someone else's perspective. Reading literary fiction is another great way to imagine life from new perspective. Find literature that introduces characters whose life experiences you've never encountered. 

As a white male German, born in Europe, I have gained much perspective from reading books and watching movies, visiting different places in the world, that gave me and give me at least a little glimpse into the life of immigrants, or people of color.

Lastly, make sure to include diverse thinkers in your discussions, as being stuck in an echo chamber can hinder empathy. If we only interact with those who think exactly like us, understanding diverse perspectives becomes difficult. Counteract this by actively seeking those who have different looks, thoughts, and lifestyles.
Apply teamwork across diverse functions, use cross-functional teams to design products or resolve issues - for better understanding. Increased inclusivity equals increased empathy. Here are some ways to foster empathy and build a deeper understanding of others. Try incorporating a new method every Monday for the next five weeks as a reminder to use these strategies for empathy.

• Switch perspectives
• Balance empathy and accountability
• Rephrase the message when responding.
• Pay attention to signs of emotional intelligence. And identifying communication that shows emotional intelligence and also realizing when mistakes are made due to lack of emotional intelligence is the first move to improving our emotional intelligence quotient.

Former Article in this context:

Empathy - What it is - Why it Matters - How to Practice

Empathy vs Sympathy and Compassion

And a few more in a wider sense ...

Take care of your own needs and your power balance - Self-care is important for everyone!

Honesty in life

and as I am writing this blog around my experience as widower

Coping with grief and loss, suffering setbacks, and mastering difficult days

Mourning - 4 Hints dealing with Grief - finding yourself on the shady side of life

Grieving, Work of Mourning - Feel and Allow Emotions