Hello,
Thank you for joining me for today's morning meditation.
Our topic today is on developing empathy.
The definition of empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.
And although some folks believe that empathy is taught or born into at an early age,
It's in your genes or you learn it from your community.
There's also research that indicates that empathy can be taught at any age.
So even if you don't feel like you're the most empathetic person,
There are strategies that you can do to build this muscle.
So I encourage you to close your eyes,
Whether you're still in bed,
Laying in your bed with your pillows,
Blankets,
Comforters.
Get really cozy.
If you're already up,
Sit upright in a chair,
Feet flat on the floor,
Or maybe you're out for a stroll to enjoy the outside.
Wherever this finds you,
Allow yourself to arrive and become aware to the present moment of here and now.
Focusing on your breath,
Welcoming these morning breaths,
These cleansing breaths,
Knowing you get to create the day that you want.
So taking your breath in through the nose,
Feeling the chest rise and the stomach expand,
And then exhaling through the nose or the mouth,
Letting it all go,
Feeling your body soften,
Melting down,
Becoming receptive to new ideas,
Allowing seeds to be planted.
I love the idea of practice is progress versus practice makes perfect.
Nothing is made perfect,
But as long as we're progressing in life,
We're doing our job.
So practice is progress here in our meditation.
Your morning meditations and your practice help you to live the life you want to live.
So continuing to take deep,
Long breaths,
Allowing the body to soften,
Releasing any tension that you feel behind the eyes,
The jaw,
The neck,
The hands,
The feet,
Breathing,
Settling.
Now becoming aware of your heart center,
Being brave enough to listen to your heart can allow you to create the life you want.
What is your heart telling you?
What do you need?
Take one long,
Deep inhale,
Followed by an exhale,
And allow the answers to come to you,
Breathing naturally and normally.
Listen to these strategies and suggestions and see if there's one that you would like to adopt today or focus on later this week on how to develop more empathy towards others.
The first suggestion is cultivating curiosity,
Being curious about the world around you,
People with different views and ideas and upbringings.
The next one is to step out of your comfort zone.
We live our life day to day with our routines,
Surrounding ourselves with things that bring us comfort,
Things that we know.
So I encourage you to step out of this comfort zone and try something new.
Talk to someone new.
Be open to situations that come up every single day that can help us expand and grow our empathy.
If your mind has wandered,
Come back to the breath,
Recommit to your practice,
Breathe deeply.
The next suggestion is to receive feedback from friends,
Family,
Those that you love and care about.
Feedback on what you do day to day and what their suggestions are to help you see things a little differently.
So as you cultivate curiosity,
Step out of your comfort zone,
Receive feedback from others.
Next examine your biases.
These are all beliefs that come from our life on this planet and every experience that we've had.
And some of our biases are unconscious.
So only by shining a light on them and thinking about them and giving them attention can we see what our biases are,
How we feel towards different groups of individuals,
Different religions,
Politics,
Others in different socio economical positions.
What are your biases in these regards?
And I encourage you to think of everyone as part of your family,
Not as the other,
Not as someone else different.
Having differences can be good,
But sometimes our biases keep different away.
So I encourage you to bring them in.
As you breathe and settle,
Relaxing any muscles that have tensed up.
Think about this next strategy of walking in the shoes of others.
Maybe talk to someone at work that has a different lifestyle than you.
Spend a day with them.
Learn what they love,
What they fear,
What their dreams are.
The next strategy is to have difficult but respectful conversations.
This comes when we talk to someone who doesn't believe what we believe.
But allow yourself to be open and receptive.
Curing without judgment.
Coming into this conversation with a sense of curiosity.
Through the eyes of a child,
Something new,
Something to be learned.
The last two strategies are surrounding continued education.
Read widely.
Read books you would never read.
Ask someone at work or school or in your family who thinks different what they're reading.
And then also to join a shared cause.
Something you feel passionately about that has a diverse group of individuals all working towards the same outcome.
So as you breathe and settle,
Knowing that the day is ahead of you,
For you to create the life you want to live,
Knowing you're in control of your reactions,
Knowing you're able to develop empathy at any age.
Allow yourself to breathe and soften as we wrap up our time together.
Take a moment to check in and see how you're feeling.
What bubbled up to the surface for you?
Commit to making one small change or actionable step towards building and developing more empathy.
Cultivating curiosity.
Stepping out of your comfort zone.
Receiving feedback.
Examining your biases.
Walking in the shoes of others.
Having difficult,
Respectful conversations.
Joining a shared cause.
And reading different books.
Hopefully one of these resonated with you.
So let's take one deep breath as we close our practice together.
Inhaling deeply through the nose.
And exhaling with a sigh through the mouth.
Letting it all go.
When you're ready,
Open your eyes,
Wiggle your fingers and your toes.
Thank you so much for allowing me the precious gift of your time.
Until next time.
