Empathy is a very important trait in terms of mental well-being and social skills. Developing empathy skills sounds like a hard thing to do in theory, but in practice it is fairly easy.
The first thing that should be done is to get into the practice of putting yourself in others’ shoes. Try to see things from their vantage point. Ask a lot of questions. This will help you feel what they are feeling and this is one level of empathy out of many that you will discover.
Getting out of your own environment helps a great deal in doing this. It challenges you, almost forces you, to see things in a different way. If you do not feel a lot of empathy, one reason might be because you are in a rut with the usual ways of doing things