Empathy: less talking, more doing

Empathy has had a comeback in recent years. It’s touted as a critical component for innovation. Helen Riess has captured this potential succinctly: “We are all interconnected on a neurobiological level far more than we have previously realized. Consciously or not, we are in constant, natural resonance with one another’s feelings. When we are engaged in shared mind intelligence, the possibilities for mutual aid and collaborative problem-solving abound”

However, despite seemingly ubiquitous, the term empathy is over and misused, and simultaneously still under-implemented as a skill in business and beyond. Nonetheless, the thoughtful development of this innate human trait appears to be increasingly critical: Not just to hone our critical thinking and problem-solving skills, but our evermore-interconnected world simply requires us to leave differences aside in the interest of the greater good. Keeping in mind a core principle of conflict resolution: acknowledgment does not mean agreement; as making this distinction supports a crucial step towards empathy: careful listening to another’s point-of-view and needs. 

The altruism that we can’t solve any of the most pressing challenges our world is facing on our own, including climate change, is truer than ever. For example, while international organizations and federal government play a crucial role in setting policies, much responsibility and opportunity for responding to the climate crisis reside with the state and local governments, and certainly with the private sector. However, civil society, as the Fridays for Future movement is illustrating so vividly these days, is critical for driving public discourse and motivating political leaders to take action. Not to forget about the daily decisions made at the individual household level that play a major role in driving GHG emissions.

We all know: In our globalized world, we all are interconnected, interdependent and interrelated, whether at the local or global level. We simply can’t tackle these challenges ourselves nor - to quote Einstein - can we solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them. Empathy and compassion are therefore not a nice-to-have attribute but need to be thoughtfully included and acknowledged in any decision-making settings.

In the class that I am teaching at Parsons School of Design, The New School, we try to do exactly that. By developing a vocabulary of emotional intelligence and building a muscle that allows us to better understand how our emotions, feelings, and thoughts impact our capacity to connect with others and consequently influence our work. Last week, we explored inter-linkages between concepts of identity and empathy. I had the pleasure to welcome researcher and educator Yvonne Feiger to the class who ran us through a series of improvisation activities helping us focus on non-verbal communication and intuition when it comes to communicating and interacting with others in unexpected settings. Jointly we deconstructed theoretical concepts through embodiment and play, recognized empathic behavior and experienced our shared humanity.

As I experienced in our classroom this past week, the best guidance when it comes to empathy may just be less talking, and more doing.