I’ve been thinking a lot lately. The specifics aren’t relevant to this conversation, but I would venture a guess that if you reading this you 1) Think a lot, and 2) want to think a lot because you like being exposed to new ideas.

I’ve been trying to get better about two things:

1. Telling stories to interact with the other person(s)
2. Being empathetic and seeking empathy from the other person(s)

In telling stories, I am finding it easier to connect with people - which is the point of empathy. But you know what I found? To be empathetic to my audience, I have to seek commonality.

This doesn’t mean I have to imitate them, far from it. What is does indicate is that I have to be able to share experiences with people in order to relate. This translates into me living: I must live to have experiences from which I can empathize.

So in order to empathize, I always have to be learning new things. Wow, what a great way to connect to people - through learning!

Image courtesy of Becky Carroll

Ken Stewart’s blog, ChangeForge.com, focuses on the collision between the constantly changing worlds of business and technology. Ken is also the Director of Technology at Kearns Business Solutions.

Tags: Empathy, Experience, Learning, life lessons, Story-Telling