I relished the chance to be a Pecha Kucha presenter last month, (bucket list!) and the night’s theme “Radical Compassion” is sticking with me. Compassion meaning: understanding, empathy, “the desire to alleviate suffering”. But what’s with the “Radical”? It’s supercharged, it’s compassion on steroids. It’s the moment when we realize other people are not going to fix the pain we see, or the pain we cause. That’s when compassion becomes radicalized…. and it demands to become our superpower.
An Epiphany…
In putting my PK talk together – I realized that most of what I have managed to accomplish in my life has been focused towards building compassion, understanding, empathy. Radical Compassion is really the thread that connects the disparate parts of my professional life, and to discover this is both a relief, and a sobering realization.
Now what?
I know that doors are opening. All I really know is that if I stay curious and open to discovery – the right expression of this energy will be made clear.
Here’s a door that’s opening very soon…
I am delighted to be invited to a conversation with Marie Sola of Daughters of Change. We will be doing a Facebook Live interview together on Saturday March 30th, 10:30 EST. I’ll be talking about my work with the Standardized Patient program at Maine Medical/Tufts, Portland Playback Theatre, Shift/POV, and an upcoming workshop: “Listen Up!: A Deeper Look at How We Listen”, as well as….the forthcoming gestation of the “Radical Compassion Podcast” that I will be building with fellow PechaKucha board member Kelly Merrill this summer.
I hope you can check out some/all of these links, and I’d LOVE it if you would tune in to our Facebook Live session on March 30 to give us your take on Radical Compassion. Happy Spring! Kym
Here’s an intriguing, interactive tool to get your group into a mental space conducive to building compassion: Shift/POV: From Conflict to Collaboration in One Hour.