In this episode, we take a close look at a quality that is so counterintuitive that many of us misinterpret it as selfishness. But our guests flip our thinking on its head and show how this single quality can positively impact our students, our peers, and our school climate.

Follow on Twitter: @jonHarper70bd @bamradionetwork  @HelenRiessMD  @MrJosephHamer

Get the books:  Brain Awakes |  The Empathy Effect

Helen Riess, M.D. is the author of The #Empathy Effect and a psychiatrist and Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. She directs the Empathy and Relational Science Program at Massachusetts General Hospital. She has devoted her career to the art and science of healing relationships. Her research has been published in leading medical journals and has won many awards. Dr. Riess’s TEDx talk "The power of Empathy TEDX" has been viewed by more than 500,000 viewers.  Her new book, The Empathy Effect has been licensed in nine foreign countries. In 2012, Dr. Riess co-founded Empathetics.com an organization that provides evidence-based empathy and communication skills training for healthcare and education. Dr. Riess and her teams are dedicated to transforming healthcare systems into compassionate care systems. Joseph Hamer is a second and third-grade combination teacher in Wichita, Kansas. He's passionate about empowering children to explore their greatest potential through the liberty found in social-emotional learning. Joseph co-authored the brand-new activity book called Brain Awakes: Empowering Children Through Breath, Balance, and Reflection. Additionally, he hosts the “Cup of Joe” podcast where he interviews inspiring educators to discuss how we can cultivate a more connected and compassionate community of learners.