If you mimic empathy long enough and the behaviors become ingrained and it becomes typical for you to tell yourself: "I wonder if my actions made so-and-so feel bad--perhaps I should try to put myself in their shoes and imagine it?", then the difference between being born with empathy and imagining it is insignificant.
It's something all people should aim for, whether they're lucky enough to be born sensitive to other people's feelings or whether they have to expend the massive effort it requires to compensate for being without it.
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Date: 2004-07-23 08:58 am (UTC)It's something all people should aim for, whether they're lucky enough to be born sensitive to other people's feelings or whether they have to expend the massive effort it requires to compensate for being without it.