Empathy Mapping for Building Trust

Pair up with a partner or focus on someone you interact with regularly (e.g., a friend, peer, or family member).

Choose a real-life situation where you had a disagreement or misunderstanding with this person. If relevant, consider a situation related to differing views on environmental or climate-related actions (e.g., recycling, travel choices, or energy use).

Take a blank piece of paper and divide it into four quadrants labeled:

• What they SAY: What did the person explicitly say during the interaction?
• What they THINK: Based on the situation, what might they have been thinking but not saying?
• What they FEEL: What emotions do you believe they were experiencing? Why?
• What they DO: How did they act or react? What behaviours did you observe?

Reflect deeply on each quadrant and write down your thoughts.

Take 5 minutes to imagine being that person in the given situation. Consider what personal experiences, fears, or values might have influenced their actions.

If addressing environmental issues, think about how their perspectives on such matters might stem from upbringing, access to resources, or exposure to information.

In a separate section, reflect on your own thoughts and feelings during the interaction:

• What was I saying, thinking, feeling, and doing?
• What might have contributed to the misunderstanding or tension?
• What assumptions did I make about the other person?

Based on your empathy map, think of one thing you can do to repair or improve trust in your relationship with this person.

This could be initiating a conversation, offering an apology, or expressing your understanding of their perspective.

If appropriate, discuss the empathy map with the person, explaining how understanding their perspective helped you gain new insights.

Share how this exercise has influenced your feelings of compassion.