The idea of tough compassion has been gaining traction because the pastel-colored version of it is proving to be unhelpful at the moment.

The idea has been described by psychologist Dacher Keltner who said that it is in line with the Buddhist tradition of stepping in to guide the person onto a different form of behavior.

The goal of true compassion is to find ways to promote the least suffering for everyone, and so, there must be the willingness to bear but also the capability to inflict some discomfort in the moment to promote longer-term well-being.

Studies show that story-based approaches can create significant change in people's world views.

With storytelling, you can take a firm stance and describe to the other person that the results of their actions have a huge impact to other people without launching a direct attack onto them.