In a world racing toward smarter machines, empathy speakers and authors Rob Volpe and Maria Ross get curious in this limited subseries about what only humans can feel, do, and be — and why that's our greatest competitive advantage. Enjoy this limited subseries here on The Empathy Edge.
Aspiration, Hope, Free Will & the Future-Oriented Mind
Humans don't just live in the present. We imagine futures that don't exist yet, then try to build them, and we do it using the same neural machinery that lets us remember our past.
Maria Ross and Rob Volpe explore what psychologist Endel Tulving called mental time travel: the brain's unique ability to simulate scenarios that haven't happened using a network that overlaps almost entirely with episodic memory. We can't dream forward if we can't look back. Yet, our memories can be unreliable, causing us to build narratives around what actually happened or how it impacted us. Are we the only species who can do this? That sets up the harder question: do we actually choose, or does it just feel like we do?
Finally, we discuss the difference between hope and optimism. When humans are at their best, they describe aspiration, vision, and forward motion, but humans in survival mode, who cannot access hope or aspiration, are equally human. What does that tell us about how fragile, and how earned, this superpower really is?
To access the episode transcript, go to www.TheEmpathyEdge.com and search by episode title.
"We don't just react to the present like many species. We reflect on the past. We imagine the future." — Maria Ross
Episode References:
About Maria Ross:
Maria Ross is a speaker, author, empathy strategist, and host of The Empathy Edge podcast, now in its sixth year. She believes cash flow, creativity, and compassion are not mutually exclusive™, and has spent decades helping leaders balance empathy with accountability to drive better results, stronger teams, and lasting impact. She is the author of four books, including the award-winning The Empathy Dilemma, a Forbes.com contributor on Workplace Empathy, and creator of two LinkedIn Learning empathy courses.
About Rob Volpe:
Rob Volpe is the Founder/CEO of Empathy Activist and the creator of The 5 Steps to Empathy, which he chronicles in his award-winning book Tell Me More About That: Solving the Empathy Crisis One Conversation at a Time. He is a recognized thought leader, speaker, and consultant in the improvement of communication and collaboration in organizations of all sizes in all industries.
Connect with Rob Volpe:
Website: robvolpe.expert
Book: Tell Me More About That: Solving the Empathy Crisis One Conversation
X: x.com/rmvolpe
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rmvolpe
Facebook: facebook.com/EmpathyActivist
Instagram: instagram.com/empathy_activist
Connect with Maria:
Get Maria's books: Red-Slice.com/books
Hire Maria to speak: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-Ross
Take the LinkedIn Learning Courses! Leading with Empathy and Balancing Empathy, Accountability, and Results as a Leader
LinkedIn: Maria Ross
Instagram: @redslicemaria
Facebook: Red Slice