CHAPTER ELEVEN

OTHER IMPORTANT VALUES AND VIRTUES IN HUMAN RELATIONS

Honesty in Human relations

Honesty has several connotations that is to say honesty typically refers to a situation characterized by the following aspect one party (trust or) is willing to reply on the actions of another party (trustee), the trust or (voluntary or forcedly) abandons control over the actions perform by the trustee. As a consequence, the trust or is uncertain about the outcome of the other’s action they can only develop and evaluate expectation. The uncertainty involves the risk of failure or harm to the trustor if the trustee will not behave as desired.

Honesty can be attributed to relationships between people, it can be demonstrated that human have a natural deposition to trust and to judge conceptually. Honesty is also attributable to relationship within and between social groups, families, friends, communities, organization s, firms and nations. It is popular approach to frame the dynamics of inter-group and intra-group interaction in term of trust. The degree to which one party trusts another is a measure of belief in the honesty fairness, or benevolence of another party.

Honesty is an important aspect of character that is the basis of building trust with another and ourselves. Each of us must learn the value of honesty through our own experience and in our own way. There are times in life when we are tested in regard to honesty and when we may question whether the truth is always necessary , but truth  is always the ultimate standard  is a dilution of  honor ,  validity and credibility of human kind. It is our duty in pursuit of personal integrity and for legitimacy of all human trust to adhere to honesty with deepest deviation and sincerity of heart.

Where do we demand honesty?

We demand honesty from our children, we demand honesty in our entire life and from our children we can’t stand it when they lie to us. We take it personal. But honesty means so much more than not lying. It’s about not deceiving, manipulating or exploiting others. It’s about self-respect and integrity.

 

The Need of Honesty in Human relations

Honesty is one of the treasured values of human being. Living life honestly means opening oneself freely and exposing one’s true self to another. Honesty is essential because it acts as glue holding people together. Moreover, honesty helps a person to conquer problems and excel in his life. However, honesty is the foundation upon a person builds any relationship.

By being honest to his loved ones, he will make them feel that they are trust worthy and closed enough for him to totally expose his true self. Thus, they are more assured that he values them and their relationship. The sweetness in the relationship, thus is more likely to remain in contrast a person will endanger his relationship with others even if he tells lie just for once.

In addition, honesty helps a person to conquer problems and excel in life. It is essential for a person to be honest with himself or herself.

Importance of Honesty

Honesty is important in many aspects of life. It is a tool that enables comprehending in a variety of people. This is important in our diverse society. So also, honesty is important in order to have decent human relationships and by living an honest life, you can easily fulfill your potential.

Finally, being honest means choosing not to lie, cheat or deceive in any way. When we are honest, we build strength of character to God and to others. We are blessed with peace of mind and self-respect and will be trusted by lord and others.

Motivation in Human relations

Motivation is the driving force which help causes us to achieve goals. Motivation is said to be intrinsic or extrinsic. The term is generally used for humans but, theoretically, it can also be used to describe the causes for animal behaviour as well. This article refers to human motivation. According to various theories, motivation may be rooted in a basic need to minimize physical pain and minimize pleasure, or it may include specific needs such as eating and resting, or a desired object, goal, state of being, ideal, or it may be attributed to less-apparent reasons such as altruism, selfishness, morality, or avoiding mortality.

Conceptually, motivation should not be confused either volition or optimism. Motivation is referred to, but distinct from emotion

 

Motivation Concept/Types

Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation: intrinsic motivation refers to motivation that is driven by an interest or enjoyment in the task itself, and exists within the individual rather than relying on any external pressure. Intrinsic motivation has been studied by social and educational psychologist since the early 1970s. Research has found that it is usually associated with high educational achievement and enjoyment by students.

Students are likely to be intrinsically motivated if they:

      i.        Attribute their educational result to internal factor that they can control (e.g. the amount of effort they put in)

     ii.        Believer they can be effective agents in reaching desired goals (e.g. the result is not determined by luck)

    iii.        Are interested in mastering a topic rather than just rote-learning to achieve decent grades.

Extrinsic motivation comes from outside of individual. Common extrinsic motivations are rewards like money and grades. Coercion and threat of punishment. Competition is in general extrinsic because it encourages the performer to win and bet other’s not to enjoy. The intrinsic rewards of the activity. A crowd cheering on the individual and trophies are also extrinsic incentives.

In the 1970s, the psychologist: Abraham Maslow suggested that people are motivated by a hierarchy of needs:

a.     First, most basic level:  psychological needs, such as the need for food, water, safety, and security

b.    Second level: needs for social interaction, such as the need to belong

c.     Third level: needs for esteem, which includes the need for respect from oneself and others.

d.    Fourth level: needs for self-actualization, or realizing one’s full potential

Maslow believed people pay attention to higher needs only when lower are satisfied

Maslow Critics

1.     Critics argue that mallow’s theory doesn’t explain why higher needs often motivate people even when lower needs are unsatisfied

2.     Critics also point out that people are sometimes simultaneously motivated by needs at different levels.

Types of Needs

People have innate needs and learned needs, both of which are influenced by society and culture people have a limited number of innate needs, which include needs for food, water, oxygen and elimination of wastes. There are, however, a relatively large number of learned needs, including needs for achievement, autonomy, and power. These needs are determined by values, or people’s perceptions of what is important in life.

Important of motivation

Motivation is important to an individual as:

a.     Motivation will help him achieve his personal goals:

b.    If an individual is motivated, he will have job satisfaction

c.     Motivation will help in self-development of individual

d.    An individual would always gain by working with a dynamic team

e.     Build friendly relationship. This can be done by keep into mind and framing an incentive plan for the benefit of the staff

Sympathy in Human relations

Sympathy (from the Greek words (sum) "together" and (pathos) "feeling" which means "fellow feeling") is the perception, comprehending, and reaction to the distress or need of another life form.Meanwhile,Grammarist.com defines sympathy as "the feeling that you care about and feel sorry about someone else's trouble, grief, misfortune, etc."; "a feeling of support for something"; or "a state in which different people share the same interests, opinions, goals, etc.".Sympathy is feeling bad for someone else because of something that has happened to them.it can also be sorrow or pity for another or readiness to favor or support.

It can also be seen as a relationship between people or things in which whatever affects one similarly affects the other.it a feeling that you care about and are sorry about someone else's trouble, grief, misfortune, etc. A state in which different people share the same interests, opinions, goals etc.

Sympathy implies a reciprocal or natural relation between two things that are both susceptible to the same influence. It also means the act or capacity for sharing the painful feelings of another.

The evolution of sympathy is tied directly into the development of social intelligence. Social intelligence references to a broad range of behaviours, and their associated cognitive skills, such as pair bonding, the creation of social hierarchies, and alliance formation. Researchers theorize that sympathy emotions, or those relating to the emotions of others, arose due to reciprocal altruism, mother-child bonding, and the need to accurately estimate the future actions of conspecifics. In other words, sympatric emotions were driven by the desire to create relationships that were mutually beneficial and to better comprehend the emotions of others that could avert danger or stimulate positive outcomes. By working together, there were better results for everyone. Social order is improved when people are able to provide aid to others when it is a detriment to oneself for the decent of the greater society. For instance, giving back to the community often leads to personal benefits.

The conditions necessary to develop sympathy begin with the creation of a small group of socially dependent individuals. Second, the individuals in this community must have a relatively long lifespan in order to encounter several opportunities to react with sympathy. Parental care relationships, alliances during conflicts, and the creation of social hierarchies are also associated with the onset of sympathy in human interactions. Sympathetic behaviour originally came about during dangerous situations, such as predator sightings, and moments when aid was needed for the sick and/or wounded. The evolution of sympathy as a social catalyst can be seen in both primate species and in human development.

Verbal communication is the clearest medium by which individuals are able to communicate feelings of sympathy. People can express sympathy by addressing the emotions being felt by themselves and others involved and by acknowledging the current environmental conditions for why sympathy would be the appropriate reaction.

Nonverbal communication presents a fascinating study of speech intonation, facial expression, bodily motions and person-to-person physical contacts. Some other forms of nonverbal communication include how far people position themselves in relation to each other, posture and appearance. These forms of expression can convey messages related to emotion as well as opinions, physical states (fatigue), and comprehending. Emotional expression is especially linked to the production of emotion-specific facial expressions. These expressions are often the same from culture to culture and are often reproduced by observers, which facilitates the observers' own comprehending of the emotion and/or situation. There are six universal emotions: happiness, sadness, fear, surprise, disgust and anger.

Facial expressions can communicate sympathy and other emotions nonverbally.

Nonverbal communication cues are often subconscious and difficult to control. Deliberate regulation of emotion and nonverbal expression is often imperfect. Nonverbal gestures and facial expressions are also generally better understood by people observing the gestures, expressions, etc., and not by the person experiencing them first hand.

Communicating using physical touch has the unique ability of conveying affective information upon contact. However, this sensation must be paired with the comprehending of the specific context of a given situation. The touch of the hand on the shoulder during a funeral might be the fastest method of conveying sympathy. Patting a person on their back, arms, or head for a few seconds can effectively convey feelings of sympathy between people. Nonverbal communication seems to provide a more genuine communication of sympathy, because it is difficult to control nonverbal behaviour and expressions. The combination of verbal and nonverbal communication facilitates the acknowledgment and comprehension of sympathy.

Although sympathy is a well-known term, the implications of sympathy found in the study of human behaviour are often less clear. Decision-making, an integral part of human behaviour, involves the weighing of costs with potential outcomes. Research on decision-making has been divided into two mechanisms, often labeled "System 1" and "System 2." These two systems, representing the gut and the head respectively, influence decisions based on context and the individual characteristics of the people involved. Sympathy is an agent working in

§  System 1, a system that uses affective cues to dictate decisions,

§  System 2 is based in logic and reason.

For instance, deciding on where to live based on how the new home feels would be a System 1 decision, whereas deciding on a home based on the property value and personal savings would be a System 2 decision. Sympathy acts in a way that provides a means of comprehending another person's experience or situation, decent or bad, with a focus on their individual well-being. It is often easier to make decisions based on emotional information, because all humans have general comprehending of emotions. It is this comprehending of emotions that allows people to use sympathy to make their decisions.

Sympathy also helps to motivate philanthropic, or aid-giving, behaviour (i.e. donations, community service). The choice to donate, and the subsequent decision of how much to give, can be separated into two, different emotion-driven decision-making processes. Mood management, or how people act to maintain their moods, influences the initial decision to donate because of selfish concerns (to avoid regret or feel better). However, how a person feels about the deservingness of the recipient determined how much to donate. Human sympathy in donation behaviour can influence the amount of aid given to people and regions that are in need. Increasing how emotional a description is, presenting individual cases instead of large groups, and using less information and numerical information can positively influence giving behaviour.

In addition to its influence on decision-making, sympathy also plays a role in maintaining social order. Judging people's character helps to maintain social order, making sure that those who are in need receive the appropriate care. The notion of interdependence fuels sympathetic behaviour; this action is seen as self-satisfying because helping someone who is connected to you through some way (family, social capital) will often result in a personal reward (social, monetary, etc.). Regardless of selflessness or selfishness, sympathy facilitates the cycle of give and take that is necessary for maintaining a functional society.

Sympathy can also impact the way doctors, nurses, and other members of society think about and treat people with different diseases and conditions. Sympathetic tendencies within the health field fall disproportionately based on patient characteristics and disease type. One factor that is frequently considered when determining sympathy is controllability, or the degree to which an individual could have avoided contracting the disease or medical condition. People devote less sympathy to individuals who had control during the event when they acquired HIV. Even less sympathy is granted to individuals who have control over the means by which they contracted HIV, such as individuals who engage in prostitution.

Sympathy in health-related decision making is heavily based on disease stigma. Disease stigma can lead to discrimination in the work place and in insurance coverage. High levels of stigma are also associated with social hostility. Several factors contribute to the development of negative disease stigmas, including the disease's time course, severity, and the dangers that the disease might pose to others. Sexual orientation of individual patients has also been shown to affect stigma levels in the case of HIV diagnoses. Sympathy is generally associated with low levels of disease stigmatization.

Sympathy is related to rise levels of knowledge regarding HIV and a lower likelihood of avoiding individuals with HIV.

Sympathy is a stepping stone in both social and moral development. It generally arises between 2–3 years old, although some instances of empathic emotion can be seen as early as 18 months. Basic sharing of emotions, a precursor for sympathy, can be seen in infants. For instance, babies will often begin to cry when they hear another baby crying nearby. This emphasizes the infant's ability to recognize emotional cues in his or her environment, even if not able to fully comprehend the emotion. Another milestone in child rearing is the development of the ability to mimic facial expressions. Both of these processes act on sensory and perceptual pathways, yet executive functioning for sympatric emotions does not begin during these early stages. Decety and Michalska (2010) believe that early affective development and later development of executive functions create a disparity between how children and young adults experience another person's pain. Young children tend to be negatively aroused more often in comparison to the older subjects.

Sympathy can lead to, and be the cause of prosocial and altruistic behaviour. Altruistic behaviour is when people who experience emotional reactions consistent with the state of another person and feel "other-oriented" (inclined to help other people in need or distressed.) People are more inclined to help those in need when they cannot easily escape the situation. If leaving is easy, an individual is likely to reduce one's own distress (of sympathy; feeling bad) by avoiding contact with the other(s) in need. Sympathy is still experienced when it is easy to escape the situation, showing that humans are "other oriented" and altruistic.

It is important to acknowledge that the use or acceptance of sympathy can be both altruistic and self-satisfying in social situations. Parenting styles (specifically level of affection) can influence the development of sympathy. Prosocial and moral development extends into adolescence and early adulthood as humans learn to better assess and interpret the emotions of others. Prosocial behaviours have been observed in children 1–2 years old. Through self-report methods it is difficult to measure emotional responses as they are not as able to report these responses as well as adult. This is representative of an rise efficiency of and ability to engage in internal moral reasoning.

For people to experience sympathy towards someone else, several elements are necessary:

§  You must be paying attention to the other person.

Being distracted limits our ability to feel sympathy.

§  The other person must seem in need in some way.

Our perceptions of the level of need will determine the level of sympathy. For instance, someone with a graze on their knee will get less sympathy than someone else with a broken leg.

We are also much more likely to be sympathetic towards someone who appears to have done nothing to ‘earn’ their misfortune.

The child who falls while running towards a parent will get more sympathy than the one who was doing something that they had been specifically told not to do, and has fallen as a result.

§    Instances of sympathy expressed verbally include:

o   Speaking to someone to say how sorry you are about their situation; and

o   Sending a card when someone has been bereaved.

§  Instances of sympathy expressed non-verbally include:

o   Patting someone on the shoulder at a funeral;

o   Putting a hand on someone’s arm when they tell you their bad news; and

o   Dropping your tone of voice when you speak.

Empathy in Human relations

Many uses “empathy” and “sympathy” interchangeably, thinking they are one and the same. Unfortunately, they are not. Let us try to distinguish one from the other. Empathy involves being able to comprehend and even feel the emotions of others. Sympathy is simply feeling compassion for others, without necessarily knowing how they feeling. Take the instance of a manager with a subordinate suffering through a period where his family members have fallen ill. A sympathetic manager will express words of comfort and reassurance to his subordinate and stop there. An empathic manager on the other hand will feel as if he is the one facing the problem, perhaps because he has gone through a similar experience before, or he imagined himself to be in the same situation. Sympathy involves comprehending the experience or circumstances surrounding the experience of others. In empathy, comprehending is on a deeper, more personal level.

According to experts in human behaviour, empathy is innate in every person, and their first manifestations are seen during infancy. New-born’s common reaction when they hear other new born cries is to do the same. This is viewed as their way of empathizing with each other. As the baby grows from infancy to childhood, their level of empathy also rises or grows. Development of empathy is said to be directly affected by several factors:

Some describe it as an art (the “art of seeing the world in the way someone else sees it”), an ability (the “ability to sense other people’s emotions and imagine what they are feeling or thinking”) and a capacity (the “capacity to comprehend or feel what another being is experiencing”). Empathy has also been described as a skill. This means that it can be learned, acquired, and honed. In short, you can teach yourself to have more empathy. In order to teach yourself empathy and become more compassionate, you have to:

Comprehend Yourself: You cannot begin to comprehend other people if you do not first comprehend yourself. Have empathy for yourself, and you will be better equipped to have empathy for others. How can you expect to comprehend others when you cannot comprehend why you are feeling or thinking the way you are. Of course, comprehending comes with acceptance. Once you have understood yourself, and accepted your emotions, then you can move on towards comprehending others.

Comprehend Others: This is the difficult part of the whole process of teaching yourself empathy. It takes a deep level of commitment and whole lot of practice until such time that you can say that you are able to gain an comprehending of how others feel or think, and why they act the way they do.

Practice Nonverbal Empathy: This comes after comprehending others. This time, you will be better able to interact and communicate with them in nonverbal ways. Sometimes, more is said when less words are spoken. Nonverbal communication is another skill that will be learned through time by those who are able to demonstrate empathy.

Types of Empathy

There are two general classifications of empathy:

1.   Affective Empathy

This pertains to the feelings and sensations that people get in response to others’ emotions or feelings. This is often described as “mirroring” others feelings, emotions or actions. A decent instance would be a person feeling tremendous amounts of stress when they see another exhibiting anxiety, fear or deep depression. A person who easily tears up when watching a sad movie or television show demonstrates strong affective empathy.

2.   Cognitive Empathy

Early childhood experiences: which largely involves child-rearing and raising practices of parents or adult guardians of their children or wards. Experiences that have an impact, including traumatic ones, tend to have the biggest effect on one’s level of empathy.

Environment and culture: which include education and exposure to various fields and disciplines, as well as people or figures of authority. Even the norms and customs unique to a culture of a certain country will also impact how a person views other.

Empathic behaviour models: the most obvious of which are the parents of the child themselves. A child’s capacity for empathy is almost often shaped or molded by what he sees in the behaviour of his parents.

Cognitive empathy, on the other hand, refers to how one switches perspectives in order to identify, comprehend and share others’ emotions or feelings. It involves actually knowing what others want, think, believe, or even care about.

Importance of Empathy

Human relationsships are an integral aspect of our lives. We are all, in one way or another, connected, and these relationships have to be sustained. Empathy is one of the ingredients towards building, maintaining and strengthening human relationships. Thus, it is safe to say that empathy improves relationships and, consequently, helps one achieve greater success and an overall feeling of well-being and happiness. Both in your professional and personal life, “people skills” are said to be very important. Many interpersonal skills have been identified as must-haves, but empathy is often overlooked. This is a bit disappointing, considering how empathy is actually one of the most important skills that one must possess in order to achieve greater success, both professionally and personally.

1. Empathy encourages people to perform acts of charity and heroism: Those with higher levels of empathy are more likely to go out of their way to help others who are in need, even at the risk of their own comfort or self-interest. It encourages acts of selflessness from people, even resulting to heroic and, to a certain extent, self-sacrificing acts.

2. Empathy reduces the level of negative emotions or ill feelings towards other people: Racism and various other prejudices are decreased when people are more able to empathize with people of different cultures, nationalities, beliefs or some other affiliation or grouping. Incidents of bullying, aggression and violence are also reduced when people display more empathy towards weaker ones.

3. Empathy promotes equality: People will start to act and think more “in the spirit of fairness”. Fights against inequality are often grounded on empathy, with the advocates promoting the idea of reaching out to the less fortunate ones, or those who belong to marginalized and stigmatized groups.

 

 

4. Empathy improves workplace relationships and processes

Stages of Empathy

1. Empathy in One’s Personal Life

Personal relationships often define who we are as a person. How we interact with others on a personal level speaks volumes about our identity and defines our personality. Just by observing how a person interacts with another, we can tell a lot about their personal traits and characteristics, as well as their strengths and weaknesses. Take, for instance, the relationship between partners in a marriage. The marriage becomes strengthened when the partners are more able to comprehend each other’s’ emotions and thoughts. Intimacy becomes deeper due to this better comprehending, and the overall satisfaction with the relationship is greatly enhanced. Conflicts, arguments and differences in opinions are also easier to settle when both are willing to look at issues from each other’s perspectives.

2. Empathy at Work

Professional relationships are just as fragile as personal relationships. Our efficiency and how we view our work and professional life in general are greatly affected by how we view the people we encounter at work and, at the same time, how they view us. Empathy also plays a role in one’s professional life. An staff displaying empathy for a co-worker is likely to remain in a decent light among everyone at work, so conflicts, arguments and bad vibes are avoided at work. Managers are also encouraged to demonstrate empathy towards their subordinates. This will command their respect and motivate them to turn in better results in their assigned tasks. Businesses and organizations are certainly not exempt from cultivating empathy, since it is seen as one of the “key survival skills” in business. Empathy is closely associated with leadership and teamwork – two elements of a successful business or organizational structure.

3. Empathy as a Skill

There are hierarchies even in the workplace, and if empathy is demonstrated in this setting, it will result in a more harmonious and peaceful working environment, while improving efficiency of the staff.

How to rise your empathy

We have already established that it is in our nature to have empathy. We were born with it. Unfortunately, there are people who have less empathy than others. The decent thing about empathy is that, since we are already in possession of it, all that is left to do is to improve or rise it. Many suggestions have been given on how empathy can be nurtured, and some of them are tackled in greater detail below.

1. Pay more attention: Sometimes, we focus too much on ourselves, or on our immediate environment, that we fail to see what is beyond or out there. Be aware and mindful of your environment and the people in it. This will heighten your senses and make it easier for you to identify the areas where empathy is most needed. When conversing with people, pay heed to even the slightest visual clues and voice changes. Even the indicator words spoken must not be taken lightly, because they may be saying more than they seem. This also means that you have to be more observant of what goes on around you. Put those to decent use. Do not just hear, but listen and actually make an effort to make sense of what you are hearing. Once you listen, you have to truly listen to the meaning of the words, and not just the surface meaning. The context within which words are spoken vary greatly depending on a lot of circumstances and if you do not listen well enough, it is easy to interpret a perfectly innocent and valid question for a malicious and insulting one.

2. Be curious: There is nothing wrong with asking questions, provided they make sense. Highly empathic people are almost always very curious about others, even if they are strangers. Of course, some may say this is tantamount to being nosy, so you have to be able to know how to draw a line between being curious out of empathy and being intrusive about it. Your curiosity should be enough to bring you out of your comfort zone, which then exposes you to a wider “world”, so to speak. By broadening your horizons, you are given more room to nurture your empathy.

3. Communicate: Some of the most empathic people are excellent conversationalists and, to be a decent conversationalist, you should have an openness, or the willingness to share part of yourself. Somewhere, it was said that empathy is a two-way street, just like communication. You cannot expect to get something without parting with anything. Say what you feel, and say it out loud. Being an active listener is not going to be enough. People often open up to others because part of them wants to hear some words of comfort or consolation. Maybe they are even seeking advice or helpful suggestions and are not even aware of it. Simple phrases such as “I comprehend” and “I get it”, or “Of course you feel that way” and “that is perfectly natural” will go a long way in making someone feel better, and improving your relationship with them.

4. Use your imagination: Put yourself in other people’s shoes, figuratively. Imagine how you would feel if roles were reversed and you were the one experiencing a certain situation instead of that other person. How will you react? How will you handle it? Studies have shown that people who have an inclination for reading literature, particularly literary fiction, develop more sensitivity. They are more capable of exploring imaginary worlds and crossing boundaries between reality and make-believe.

5. Walk in their shoes: Or you can take it more literally. Try spending a day with them, shadowing their every move, and getting a front seat to what actually happens.

6. Avoid being too judgmental: If you are quick to judge people and you jump to conclusions even before getting all the facts, you will not be able to improve your empathy. Do not be a cynic and assume that everyone deserves what they get, at least until you have all the facts. People are often too quick to attach labels or a stigma to certain groups because of generalizations formulated from one or a couple of what should be considered as isolated incidents. The tendency is to lump them in one group with a common identifying trait or characteristic, making it hard to empathize with them. Do not be one of those who make these generalizations. Always remember that, before they are part of a group, they are still individuals, and that is how you should start viewing them.

7. Cultivate an interest in music:  Music is an excellent booster of empathy, since it can appeal directly to one’s emotions. Various musical-related activities have been engaged by professionals in an effort to cultivate empathy in younger people, particularly children. For instance, psychologists claim that musical games can accomplish exactly that in young children. Adults also turn to music for various reasons, one of which is to regain a sense of calmness and serenity. People who are calm and serene are more capable of sharing empathy.

8. Open yourself up to pain:  You will never be able to show empathy if you are averse to witnessing pain, and even experiencing it. If you avoid seeing sights of suffering and pain, how will you acquire credibility when delivering words of comfort? You will simply

be expressing sympathy then. Open your eyes to the pain and suffering that goes on around you. This will make you more aware, heighten your sensitivity and, consequently, rise your empathy.

9. Monitor your progress: See how you are doing in your efforts to rise your empathy. Has it improved your personal relationships with friends and family? Has it improved your working relationship with your bosses and co-staff? Did it bring about decent results at work? By monitoring your progress, you will be able to tell if you need to work on your empathy more.
 

References

Gallese, V. (2003). "The Roots of Empathy: The Shared Manifold Hypothesis and the Neural Basis of Inter subjectivity". Psychopathology.36 (4): 171–180. Cutesier 10.1.1.143.2396 doi:10.1159/000072786. PMID 14504450.

Pijnenborg, G.H.M.; Spikman, J.M.; Jeronimus, B.F & Aleman, A. (2012). "Insight in schizophrenia: associations with empathy”. European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience.263 (4): 299–307. doi:10.1007/s00406-012-03 73-0. PMID 23076736

Hodges, S.D., & Klein, K.J. (2001). Regulating the costs of empathy: the price of being human. Journal of Socio-Economics.