Shoe-shifting, the ability to put yourself in the other guy’s shoes is a fundamental skill of extraordinary power. It’s almost as magical as shape-shifting in fantasy in sci-fi.
It’s the scientific method applied to social life.  We tend to assume science is, at core, about experimentation, but there’s a deeper core still, a core that experiment serves.  Science is the recognition that to get what you want, you have to set aside your want long enough to see what is. Then, clearer on context, you’ll have a better chance of getting what you want.

Source:  Psychology Today