3 Ways to Build Empathy

I know I have said it before, but life is such an interesting adventure. Besides increasing self-compassion in the world, I personally think there is also a need for greater empathy. In this post, I am going to share –

• What is Empathy?
• What is the Difference Between Empathy and Sympathy?
• 3 Ways to Build Empathy

What is Empathy?

There are many definitions of empathy, including –

• “the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.” ~ Google and Oxford Dictionaries
• “the feeling that you understand and share another person’s experiences and emotions : the ability to share someone else’s feelings” ~ Merriam-Webster
• “the psychological identification with or vicarious experiencing of the feelings, thoughts, or attitudes of another” ~ Dictionary.com

What is the Difference Between Empathy and Sympathy?

There are some significant differences between empathy and sympathy. Following is a great clip outlining these differences.

3 Ways to Build Empathy

There are a number of ways to practice empathy, however I am going to share 3. They are –

1. Cultivate curiosity about people. When was the last time you really had a discussion with someone and were authentically curious about them and how they were going? Is this something you could cultivate?

2. Put yourself in someone else’s shoes. If you need some practice with this, here is a wonderful example of what this could look like.

3. Use the following EMPATHY acronym. Helen Reiss developed this acronym and indicates we can develop empathy through –

• E: eye contact and indicating “I see you”
• M: muscles of facial expression and reading facial emotions
• P: posture – conveying connection
• A: affect – expressing emotions and naming the feelings
• T: tone of voice
• H: hearing the whole person with unconditional acceptance
• Y: your response to peoples feelings and mirroring these feelings.

If you would like to hear more, you can watch the following clip called “The Power of Empathy” by Helen Reiss.

If you are ready to reclaim your courage and take the next step towards freedom and opening your heart, why not join our Toolkit?