We live in a world that tempts us every day to be less empathetic. Whether it’s the conflict-driven world of social media, the daily disasters we see on the news, or the victims of mental illness we see on the streets. Seeing and feeling others’ pain can be overwhelming.
However, as humans we are hard-wired to be empathetic. We aren’t just self-serving beings whose relationships are wholly transnational in nature. We have evolved to give without receiving, to feel for those we’ve never met, and to cooperate and provide mutual aid in our communities.
Roman Krznaric, Ph.D., a founding faculty member of The School of Life in London and empathy adviser to the United Nations, made a list of six ways that we can cultivate empathy to be better members of our community and planet.
Habit 1: Cultivate curiosity about strangers
Highly empathetic people are very interested in strangers. They will chat with the person behind them in line at the supermarket and crack a joke or two with the gas station teller.
But cultivating curiosity in others isn’t just about small talk. Krznaric believes one of the best ways to cultivate this curiosity is to challenge yourself to have one conversation with a stranger a week. “All it requires is courage,” he wrote.
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Habit 2: Challenge prejudices and discover commonalities
It’s very easy to label other people based on their social identities, e.g. “soccer mom” or “hipster.” These labels often prevent us from getting to really know them or explore our commonalities.
To cultivate an attitude of empathy, try to engage in label-free thinking, and focus on the things you share in common instead.
