A Whole New Mind: The Six Senses (Empathy)

The 4th of Pink's Six Senses: Empathy

Being able, in a given situation, to feel what another person feels…walk a mile in their moccasins—that’s empathy. Pink distinguishes empathy from sympathy—feeling bad for someone else. Rather it’s getting in sync with another person’s way of thinking and feeling. Often shrugged off as being too touchy feely, empathy remains the core of the Conceptual Age. Pink borrows from the work of another favorite author of mine, Dan Goleman, who has written extensively how empathy makes us more socially and personally aware—much more critical than intelligence as executives climb the corporate ladder. Again, Pink (like me) has a fascination for doctors. He notes that high scores in clinical practice had much more to do with scores on empathy than on MCAT (the admissions test for med school). His discussion about men and women and empathy is not new but again underscores his point about androgyny.