I am an ordinary person who has been blessed with extraordinary opportunities and experiences.
Sonia SotomayorRead
I was fifteen years old when I understood how it is that things break down: people can't imagine someone else's point of view.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Understanding others' perspectives is crucial to human interaction.
In this quote, Sonia Sotomayor reflects on her early realization that a fundamental reason for misunderstandings and conflicts among people is the inability to empathize with one another's viewpoints. This recognition underscores the importance of perspective-taking in fostering compassion and resolving differences, suggesting that personal growth and societal harmony hinge on our capacity to appreciate the experiences and thoughts of others.
Themes
PerspectiveEmpathyUnderstandingCommunicationHuman Nature
In practice
Example use cases
In a workshop about conflict resolution, this quote can highlight the importance of empathy.
More from Sonia Sotomayor
All quotes →This wealth of experiences, personal and professional, have helped me appreciate the variety of perspectives that present themselves in every case that I hear.
Sonia SotomayorRead
The truth is that since childhood I had cultivated an existential independence. It came from perceiving the adults around me as unreliable, and without it I felt I wouldn't have survived. I cared deeply for everyone in my family, but in the end I depended on myself.
Sonia SotomayorRead
As you discover what strength you can draw from your community in this world from which it stands apart, look outward as well as inward. Build bridges instead of walls.
Sonia SotomayorRead
There are uses to adversity, and they don't reveal themselves until tested. Whether it's serious illness, financial hardship, or the simple constraint of parents who speak limited English, difficulty can tap unexpected strengths.
Sonia SotomayorRead
I want to state upfront, unequivocally and without doubt: I do not believe that any racial, ethnic or gender group has an advantage in sound judging. I do believe that every person has an equal opportunity to be a good and wise judge, regardless of their background or life experiences.
Sonia SotomayorRead
Similar quotes
Every myth is psychologically symbolic. Its narratives and images are to be read, therefore, not literally, but as metaphors.
Joseph CampbellRead
The long habit of living indisposeth us for dying.
Thomas BrowneRead
My diary seems to keep me whole.
Anais NinRead
Some women will spend thirty minutes to an hour preparing for church externally (putting on special clothes and makeup, etc.). What would happen if we all spent the same amount of time preparing internally for church—with prayer and meditation?
Leonard RavenhillRead
The ADA was a landmark civil rights legislation. It was a bill of rights for persons with disabilities, a formal acknowledgement that Americans with disabilities are Americans first and that they're entitled to the same rights and freedoms as everybody else.
Valerie JarrettRead
The arbitrary rule of a just and enlightened prince is always bad. His virtues are the most dangerous and the surest form of seduction: they lull a people imperceptibly into the habit of loving, respecting, and serving his successor, whoever that successor may be, no matter how wicked or stupid.
Denis DiderotRead