FamilyLife Blended® Minute

Listening Empathetically

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April 21, 2022
MP3 Download

No, I mean, are you listening? Listening empathetically? Stepmom Sara needs her kitchen to be clean. Stepdaughter Kari wants to bake a gift for Sara. When she saw the mess, Sara laid into Kari. Her need for cleanliness was getting in the way of hearing Kari’s need to be accepted by her stepmom. She wasn’t listening empathetically, she was just listening pathetically. She should have ignored the mess for a while and just thanked Kari. Don’t listen pathetically. Listen for their need and love.

FamilyLife Blended® Minute
FamilyLife Blended® Minute
Listening Empathetically
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About the Guest

Photo of Ron Deal

Ron Deal

Ron L. Deal is one of the most widely read and viewed experts on blended families in the country. He is Director of FamilyLife Blended® for FamilyLife®, founder of Smart Stepfamilies™, and the author and Consulting Editor of the Smart Stepfamily Series of books including the bestselling Building Love Together in Blended Families: The 5 Love Languages® and Becoming Stepfamily Smart (with Dr. Gary Chapman), The Smart Stepfamily: 7 Steps to a Healthy Family, and Preparing to Blend. Ron is a licensed marriage and family therapist, popular conference speaker, and host of the FamilyLife Blended podcast. He and his wife, Nan, have three sons and live in Little Rock, Arkansas. Learn more at FamilyLife.com/blended.

About the Host

Photo of Ron Deal

Ron Deal

Ron L. Deal is one of the most widely read and viewed experts on blended families in the country. He is Director of FamilyLife Blended® for FamilyLife®, founder of Smart Stepfamilies™, and the author and Consulting Editor of the Smart Stepfamily Series of books including the bestselling Building Love Together in Blended Families: The 5 Love Languages® and Becoming Stepfamily Smart (with Dr. Gary Chapman), The Smart Stepfamily: 7 Steps to a Healthy Family, and Preparing to Blend. Ron is a licensed marriage and family therapist, popular conference speaker, and host of the FamilyLife Blended podcast. He and his wife, Nan, have three sons and live in Little Rock, Arkansas. Learn more at FamilyLife.com/blended.

Episode Transcript

Ron: Okay, if you have any relationships, anybody you care about, I want to give you a principle that will strengthen those relationships. Are you listening?

Announcer: For FamilyLife Blended®, here’s Ron Deal.

Ron: No, I mean, are you listening? Listening empathetically? Okay, stepmom Sara needs her kitchen to be clean. Stepdaughter Kari wants to bake a gift for Sara. When she saw the mess, Sara laid into Kari. Her need for cleanliness was getting in the way of hearing Kari’s need to be accepted by her stepmom.

She wasn’t listening empathetically; she was just listening pathetically. She should have ignored the mess for a while and just thanked Kari. Don’t listen pathetically. Listen for their need and love. For FamilyLife Blended®, I’m Ron Deal.

Announcer: To find out more visit familylifeblended.com.

FamilyLife Blended with Ron Deal is a production of FamilyLife

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