Ryan Dangerfield | Staff Writer | @ryandanger23
The speakers for the second session of TedX UVU were Paul Parkin, a communication professor, Carine Clark, a survivor of ovarian cancer, UVU President Matthew Holland, Cheryl Hanewicz, department chair of the Technology Management Department, and Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes.
Parkin spoke about empathy and said empathy is one person’s struggle to try and understand another’s experiences which forges communication that is inquisitive, non-judgmental, validating and compassionate.
“Communicating with empathy softens us and we begin to see people differently,” said Parkin. “When we cultivate empathy, we enlarge our capacity to love, to forgive, and to be accepting of others.”
The second speaker of the session was Clark, who spoke about the importance of gratitude and the importance of sharing compared to competing.
“It is impossible to be stressed out while being thankful. Think about it,” said Clark, president & CEO of MaritzCX. “People who are happy and fulfilled look at things differently. They do not think half-full or half-empty, but rather are happy just to have the glass.”
Clark said there are two types of people. One wants a bigger piece of the pie no matter the size of the whole. The second are those who are willing to sacrifice in order to have a piece of a much bigger pie, and if you look through a lens of abundance everything will be better.
Holland said during his talk that Abraham Lincoln would not ask anyone to surrender their determination to live according to moral truth, but rather would ask us to remember the ideals of the United States and what they command.
“Love is a monument to shape true leaders,” said Reyes. “It can unify the strongest political enemies, and transcend ideological divides. The best leaders care more about their people than anything else.”
Reyes told stories about his heritage and the ideals he tries to live by while working in such a powerful office.
