One of the reasons empathy can be difficult is that it asks something of us. It asks us to temporarily loosen our attachment to our own perspective and become genuinely interested in another person's experience.
That does not mean abandoning our beliefs or agreeing with what someone says. Rather, it means becoming curious before becoming certain. The goal is not to surrender our perspective, but to expand it.
In conflict, relationships, and leadership, this ability to move from opinion to understanding is often what creates the possibility of connection, learning, and meaningful dialogue.