In a world with almost 8 billion people we know less than .001% of them. So how can we learn to have empathy for the other 99.99%? Humans are sympathetic beings and when we feel connected to a cause, movement, or a harrowing story we can easily feel inspired. We want to join or help in any way that we can. Yet when it comes to strangers, acquaintances, and adversaries in our lives we’re rarely compelled to give our time -let alone our compassion. We tend to feel sorry for others who seem worse off than us. Or we put down those that we think are better off than us. But no matter where we are in life, we all deal with valid personal struggles.
Most of us interact with people daily, some we like and others we don’t. It’s important to keep in mind that those we interact with are likely dealing with something painful in their life -externally or internally. Not everyone is aware of their own struggles or doesn’t know how to process them. So when others clash with or lash out at us, it’s really a manifestation of their own insecurities, fears, or problems they haven’t faced. Knowing this can help us gain compassion towards the rest of the world. We come to realize that the issue isn’t between them and us. It’s between them and their issues. If we believe this to be true, then we can’t take anything personally. Thus it won’t allow for any anger or resentment to exist between us in the first place.