Empathy allows me to connect with the world in a deeper and more meaningful way. Not just being able to understand how people feel, but to feel how they feel gives insight into how to make real and lasting positive change. With that being said, I believe acting and thinking with empathy expands outside of the human species and into the diversity of life and even our environment and ultimately our planet Earth. It has helped me think of the bigger picture and humbled me into believing that there is more to life than just taking care of myself and interests, it's about improving the lives of the people (and critters) around me and the generations that have yet to come.
Developing software empathetically allows you to design in a more thoughtful way. Coming up with solutions to improve the user's experience, potentially in ways that they hadn't even realized, is a path toward high quality work. Being able to 'step in' to the shoes of the user gives the designer a unique perspective. Developing with empathy potentially allows the developer to create and implement features that improve the user's experiences in ways that might not have been possible had they been simply designing for themselves.
Empathy in the workplace is important because it can allow the team to form stronger bonds and recognize eachother's strengths and weakness' and act accordingly. Recognizing a team member's strength can enhance efficiency of the development process and efficacy of the product itself. Acting with empathy in the workplace and with a team can also help a team member to bounce back from a traumatic life experience that might be affecting their work. Knowing that you have a team that has 'got your back' in and out of the workplace is incredibly relieving empowering.
I've been doing real estate photography for an agency rather consistently since moving to Colorado and I nearly approached 5000 photoshoots before moving on to Turing. Last year I was training a new photographer and I caught myself feeling frustrated that they couldn't implement what I thought to be an incredibly simple technique in composing an image. It got to a point where they were likely picking up on my frustration which would only make things more difficult. When I took a deep breath, put myself in their position and began to empathize that they were brand new to this, it allowed me to train them much more effectively and by the end of the day they were composing their images very well.
When do you find it most difficult to be empathetic in professional settings? How can you improve your skills when faced with these scenarios?
I find it most difficult to think and act empathetically when a client or coworker is acting rude or morally unjust. It almost makes me feel like they don't deserve empathy, but then again who am I to make that call? They could just be having a bad day or they could even simply just not be a very good person. I think that being able to recognize that acting with empathy isn't about whether the other person is deserving of it or not, it's about setting an example and using empathy to interact with the world in a more meaningful and lasting way.