Atul Gawande, master of mentalizing
I just saw that someone I know posted this year's June 1st graduation speech for the UCLA School of Medicine given by the famous Harvard surgeon and New Yorker writer Dr. Atul Gawande. He writes eloquently and inspiringly about curiosity, or as we call it here, mentalizing.
What Dr. Gawande doesn't mention in his speech is that curiosity not only allows us to feel empathy towards people very different from ourselves, but also that same curiosity - by making other people feel understood - allows them to open their minds to your perspective. That's pretty important for doctors - but equally so for anyone trying to get their point across in an important conversation. Read the full speech in the link below:
