EMPATHY
What if the secret to creating something people love isn’t being clever or talented — but being curious about other people?
CORE CONCEPT
IMPORTANCE OF EMPATHY
KEY KNOWLEDGE
1
Empathy = understanding and sharing someone else’s feelings — seeing the world through their eyes, not just yours.
REAL WORLD EXAMPLE
Think about the last time your friend was upset about a bad grade. You didn’t get the same grade — but you still felt a heaviness in your chest because you understood their disappointment. That’s empathy. Now imagine a designer feeling that same thing for a stranger who can’t figure out how to use an app. That feeling is where great design starts.
2
In creative work, empathy means designing FOR people, not just for yourself. The user’s needs come before the creator’s preferences.
REAL WORLD EXAMPLE
You love dark purple backgrounds and tiny fonts — they look cool to you. But your grandmother squints at her phone and needs large text and high contrast. If you’re designing an app she’ll use, your preferences don’t matter — hers do. The moment you put HER needs first, you’re designing with empathy.
3
Empathy requires curiosity: asking questions, listening, observing, and genuinely caring about other people’s experiences.
REAL WORLD EXAMPLE
A student building a school event app doesn’t just sit at a desk imagining what students want. She walks around during lunch, asks people what annoys them about the current notice board, listens to their answers without interrupting, and watches which notices people actually stop to read. Curiosity is empathy in action.
4
It’s NOT the same as sympathy (feeling sorry for someone). Empathy is understanding WITH someone, not looking down at them.
REAL WORLD EXAMPLE
Sympathy says: “Oh, you lost your phone? That’s sad.” Empathy says: “I know how it feels — all your photos, your chats, your music — it’s like losing a piece of your daily life.” Sympathy stands outside. Empathy steps inside. Designers who step inside create things that feel like they were made by someone who truly understands.
5
Empathy is a skill that can be practised and strengthened — the more you observe people, the better you get at understanding them.
REAL WORLD EXAMPLE
The first time you try to guess why your younger cousin is crying, you might get it wrong. But after spending a week with them, you start noticing patterns: they cry when they’re tired, not hungry. That’s your empathy muscle getting stronger through practice. Designers do the same thing — the more users they observe, the faster they understand what people need.
6
Every one of the 12 EYEAM programs requires empathy: designing for a user (UI/UX), telling a viewer’s story (film), creating a visitor’s experience (spatial), building a customer’s trust (branding).
REAL WORLD EXAMPLE
A UI/UX designer thinks: “What does the user need to see first?” A filmmaker thinks: “What does the audience need to feel right now?” An architect thinks: “How will a visitor feel walking through this door?” A brand designer thinks: “Will the customer trust this logo?” Different fields, same starting point: empathy.
7
Apple designs products by obsessing over how people actually hold, tap, and interact with devices — every design decision starts with empathy for the user
REAL WORLD EXAMPLE
When Apple designed the iPhone, they didn’t start with what looks cool. They watched how people naturally hold a phone, how far a thumb can reach, which corner is easiest to tap. That’s why the most important buttons are always within thumb’s reach. Every smooth, effortless moment you experience on your phone started with someone caring about YOUR hand.
8
What if the most powerful creative tool you have isn’t software or a camera — it’s your ability to care about the person on the other side?
REAL WORLD EXAMPLE
Software changes every year. The app you use today might not exist tomorrow. But the ability to pause and ask “What does this person need?” never goes out of date. A thousand designers can use the same software — but the one who truly cares about the person using their work will always create something better. Your empathy is your unfair advantage.
Pro Connection
Design thinking — the process used at companies like IDEO, Apple, and Google — starts with empathy as step one. When a UX researcher says “let’s talk to users first,” they’re saying empathy before creation. When a filmmaker says “what does the audience need to feel right now?” that’s empathy guiding storytelling.
PROFESSIONAL TERMINOLOGY
CLICK TO REVEAL and CLICK TO COVER
The ability to understand and share another person's feelings and experiences — seeing the world through their eyes
What is
EMPATHY
The person who will use, experience, or interact with whatever you're creating
What is
USER
An approach to design that puts people's needs, behaviours, and feelings at the centre of every decision
What is
HUMAN-CENTRED
Something a person requires or desires — the problem your creative work should address
What is
NEED
Someone's unique way of seeing and experiencing the world — shaped by their life, culture, and circumstances
What is
PERSPECTIVE
THE EMPATHY MINUTE
One minute. Someone different from you. One feature that would make their day better. That is design thinking.
what TO DO
Pick someone you know who is different from you in some way — younger, older, different interests, different daily routine.
Spend 1 minute imagining their day: when do they wake up? What frustrates them? What makes them smile? What do they struggle with?
Write down 3 things about their day based on your imagining — be as specific as possible.
Now imagine you are designing an app for them. Write down ONE feature that would make their day a little bit better.
Write one sentence: "I designed [feature] for [person] because [specific reason based on their day]."
CHALLENGE
DISCOVERY
You can use these SOFTWARES for this Discovery Challenge
FREE SOFTWARE : Google Keep, Apple Notes / Samsung Notes, Voice Recorder
PAID SOFTWARE : Notion, GoodNotes 6