Standing in our own shoes, everything is logical and reasonable: the knife left on the cutting board after we are done cooking, the explanation we hung in the classroom (that nobody looks at), the decisions we make regardless of the impact on others, and the blame when we are angry.
Willing to put ourselves in others’ shoes (empathy), we imagine what it’s like for them: they don’t put the knife away because they might not know the importance of proper maintenance after each usage; the information that helps students and they genuinely care about; if we make decisions this way, what are the negative impacts for people we care about; lashing out in anger and blaming work against our efforts to seek the middle ground for resolving our differences.
Willingness is the start of empathy. It’s never easy or convenient, but it changes us and improves the outcome we seek.
