by lieutenant general William G. Pagonis  U.S. Army Whether you’re running a company or feeding, clothing, and equipping an army, the bedrock principles of leadership don’t change: Know your stuff and listen hard, a…

 “Empathy calms the emotional brain so that we can perceive situations and interactions accurately and thoughtfully. With empathy, we produce our own natural stress-reducing chemicals that create calm, focused energy, allowing us to do and be our …

Only after IDEO designers fully understand and empathize with a problem do they investigate the software and hardware necessary to create an effective solution.

Understanding the problem always starts with researching the audience, but it’s not about “just talking to people.” IDEO designers go to extreme lengths to experience problems firsthand before they start concepting solutions.

How far are they willing to go? Once, an IDEO designer researching how to improve hospital visits, admitted himself into the ER and recorded the entire experience. The resulting video showed how much time patients spend looking up at boring ceiling tiles — a unique perspective you wouldn’t think of until experiencing the environment for yourself.

“Experiencing it develops empathy,” Blaise explained, “which leads to innovation.”

The ability to see things from others’ perspectives is key to business success. Here’s how to up your empathy quotient.Empathy might seem like a nice-to-have extra, a touchy-feely quality that’s most important in personal relationships and being a nice…