Quotes About Empathy

Making other people feel bad about themselves and their needs is a very powerful thing to do. Totally immoral, but powerful.

But in the same way that you can listen to a part of yourself without agreeing with it, you can listen to your partner, or indeed anyone, with compassion without giving up your own position. You gain both closeness and true power by acknowledging what someone else thinks and feels. An

It goes back to women's sensitivity to others and their desire to maintain connection at almost any cost. Often, women won't even ask at all. They'll "intuit" whether a request might cause somebody discomfort, hold themselves back from asking, and then secretly be angry at the person they haven't asked for not being willing to give it to them! In

Women often suffer most not from the original source of pain, but from being told that it shouldn't upset them so much. This leaves them fighting an exhausting inner battle to hide and "manage" their feelings around other people who want them to pretend to feel better, often because they can't cope with seeing them in pain. Feelings

If you actually want to have an impact on other people's feelings and behavior, there is absolutely nothing more powerful, paradoxically, than fully listening to and accepting how they feel, and letting them know it.

The most important question of all, surprisingly, is not, "Do I love my partner?" It is, "Do I like the me that I am when I'm with him?" Do

purely hated myself because I hadn't bothered to ask his name. People oughtn't to breeze into your life and out again in ten seconds, without leaving even a name behind. As Mr. Dickens once pointed out, we're all on our way to the grave together.

Leadership presence involves humility. As Andrea Zintz, career coach and president of Strategic Leadership Resources, clarifies, humility is not about diminishing your stature but rather involves benevolence, consideration,

generosity, and graciousness. By keeping humility in mind, you rise above the challenges to build trust.

The most charismatic leaders don't seem to be as concerned with the material they're presenting as they are with getting to know their audiences.

learned from him that the spark between audience and speaker is ignited as you give the audience your full attention. He also advised me that it's okay to feel your fear but remember that most people want you to succeed.

Executive coach Alan Allard told me, "Listening shows respect, even if you don't agree with what the person is saying.

Confidence spark One of the best ways to listen to someone is to tune in to the sound of his voice. He may be saying one thing but meaning something else. Focus on the quality of his tone—does he sound stressed or confident? What do you know about him that can help you figure out what he is really saying? If thoughts come up that distract you, just keep focusing on his voice to heighten your awareness of his real motivation and mental state.

Confidence spark Try this the next time you receive feedback and find yourself getting defensive. Take a few deep breaths and repeat back what has been said to show that you have understood. Doing this will give you a little distance from reacting in a way you might regret. Later on you can reflect on what fits and what doesn't. If you need support, get input from a trusted colleague.

Life there had been grim, but he had a maid, a woman who took care of him and cooked for him and even bathed him. Lucky bastard. There were times when I wanted to throw his book across the room, I was so jealous of his freedom. What was a political prisoner compared with being a full-time mother? But

We were united not only by political respect for each other, but also by deep mutual sympathy as people.

Tell me how much you know of the sufferings of your fellow man and I will tell you how much you have loved them.

Any business with customers is in the "people" business.

I drink to make other people more interesting.

What differentiates us from animals is the fact that we can listen to other people's dreams, fears, joys, sorrows, desires and defeats - and they in turn can listen to ours.

Not having time for a person, not being able to sit in silence together with somebody, that's the same as rejecting them, as being scornful about them.

Every secret we confide in another person can be a burden to them

Nous serons reconnus par les grandes douleurs.

It is an important experience to be in the presence of a thinking creature who is crying. A weak, broken creature who is crying creates the same impression as an omnipotent god whom one implores; for in its weakness and defeat it rises above the human condition.