What Revolution Will I Lead?

This post is inspired by Scott Dinsmore's Blog Challenge. 

Multiple things come to my mind when I think about making a difference in the world. On a given day I am thinking and reading about multiple things - environment, technology, gender stereotypes, human interactions to name a few. But as I am writing this blog there is one thing that I keep coming back to. The revolution I will lead on any given day is: How to make human beings more empathetic? And this blog post seems like perfect way to share my thoughts on "being empathetic". I hope this post plants a seed for this revolution.

Empathy roughly means the capacity to place oneself in another's shoes. Hmm think about that as you are reading this post. When I think of empathy and what it means, it is more than just being empathetic towards your immediate family and circle of friends. It is more than a standard set of circumstances under which you exercise it. It comes naturally to you no matter who you are are interacting with. It can be your meddlesome neighbor, your paid often late help, your misguided management, your gold plating vendor, your competitor or the person sitting in a third world country providing back office support in a different accent. How are you feeling in those shoes?

Being an empathetic person means that you continuously challenge yourself when it comes to understanding different perspectives, ideas and cultures. You do not shy away when presented with the extreme behaviors, exaggerated opinions and less than ideal circumstances. You do not feel betrayed when you give others a chance or second or third chance. Not only that, you are empathetic towards yourself. You give yourself a chance to learn, explore and make mistakes. Additionally, Empathy does not stop at human interactions. It transcends human interactions and applies to interactions with your pets, your environment, the entire universe.

The single most important lesson that we can teach each and every person on this planet today is to be empathetic towards each other. This lesson needs to be imparted as early as possible in kids and needs to be continually impressed upon in adults. Because empathy leads to a better understanding of people and situations. It enables us in making good and solid decisions.

Think about how different our world would be if our corporations, leaders and politicians learn to exercise empathy. I for one can't wait to be part of that world!