Like many of you, I’ve been tinkering with DeepSeek —some tests general, others specific to the Acuity platform. This weekend, though, I stumbled on its secret superpower, and it has nothing to do with accuracy, quality, speed, or cost.
DeepSeek doesn’t just answer questions. It shows its work. Every response pulls back the curtain on its reasoning—the data, logic, and context behind its thinking. What seems like mere transparency is something deeper - a live demonstration of how we might actually listen to each other.
Why this got me thinking: Human communication is messy. We assume, interrupt, and armor up. But here’s an AI modeling what we rarely do—prioritizing understanding over reaction. A virtual empathy escort.
When DeepSeek explains its process, three things happen:
1️⃣ Trust Grows: No black boxes. You see the gears turning—even when they grind. (Imagine meetings where we did this.)
2️⃣ Empathy Sneaks In: It’s harder to dismiss a viewpoint when you watch it being built. (Most fights aren’t about disagreement—they’re about feeling unheard.)
3️⃣ Time Slows Down: You can’t skim a reasoning chain. It forces you to engage. (Rare in a world of hot takes and TL;DRs. I'm trying to keep this post snappy and brief!)
Now, DeepSeek’s transparency is automatic. Humans? Not so much. We don’t come with “show your work” settings. To get this level of understanding in real life, we have to ask for it—and give it. That means:
🔸 Asking questions instead of assuming intent,
🔸 Making space for someone’s full context (even when we’re itching to interrupt),
🔸 Asking still more questions for clarity and additional context,
🔸 Practicing patience over snap judgments.
DeepSeek’s design gives us a playbook: If we mimic its curiosity—asking “why,” digging deeper, withholding judgement, blame—we can hack human conversations the same way.
Marcus Buckingham nails it in Love+Work:
“We exist and are uplifted only through our connection to another person. We will be good, and noble, and our biggest and most powerful versions of ourselves only through the eyes and heart of another.”
I couldn’t agree more. And tools that foster genuine understanding are vital—they equip us to collaborate, solve problems, and move forward together, even when we disagree. DeepSeek’s not perfect, but it’s a start.
To be clear, we have to address AI’s hard questions—jobs, inequality, privacy, none of this is going away. But elevating how humans interact will enable us to develop solutions to those very challenges.
Better communication won’t magically fix economies, but it might help us redesign them fairly. It won’t erase disagreement, but it could turn shouting matches into dialogues. And it sure won’t replace policymakers—but it might help them listen.😜
Call to Action (Fun & Easy):
Spend 5 minutes (probably more - I said this was fun) asking DeepSeek something contentious. Watch how it:
✔ Considers your perspective,
✔ Balances conviction with curiosity,
✔ Exposes its limits,
✔ Then responds thoughtfully.
After, ask yourself:
❓ “What if I brought 10% of this to my next tough conversation?”
❓ “How would my relationships shift if I did?”
❓ “What might be the impact on my life as a consequence?”
DeepSeek isn’t unique—any chatbot could explain its reasoning. But it's the first I’ve seen that acts as kind of a virtual empathy coach, modeling how curiosity and transparency can reshape conversations. The power lies in what we can steal from DeepSeek’s playbook:
➡️ Ask “why” more than “what”—digging for context instead of assuming motives.
➡️ Lead with humility—owning gaps in our own reasoning.
➡️ Treat conversations like shared projects, not debates to win.
Maybe I’m alone in seeing this buried superpower. But if even a few of us start mirroring DeepSeek’s quiet example—not waiting for permission, just practicing—we might spark a cascade. Not of tech disruption, but of human conversations that actually work.
I’m betting a coffee it’s worth trying. Who’s in?
Bit of an odd post, I know. Grateful, as ever, for the attention and consideration. 😁🙏❤️
