Sharing awe with others
Experience and talk about wonder together to deepen both the awe and the bond.
Key takeaways
- What it is: Experience and talk about wonder together to deepen both the awe and the bond.
- Why it works: Awe is partly a social, collective emotion — it evolved alongside shared ritual and tends toward connection and "we"-focus. Experiencing it with another person and naming it aloud both amplifies the felt awe and strengthens the relationship, because awe already orients you toward others.
- Evidence: Backed by observational / correlational evidence.
- Avoid: Keeping awe entirely private, or narrating it so much you talk over the experience. The aim is to share the felt moment, not to lecture about it.
Why it works
Awe is partly a social, collective emotion — it evolved alongside shared ritual and tends toward connection and "we"-focus. Experiencing it with another person and naming it aloud both amplifies the felt awe and strengthens the relationship, because awe already orients you toward others.
How to do it
- 1Invite someone into an awe experience deliberately — a view, a piece of music, a night sky.
- 2Say out loud what is striking you rather than keeping it private.
- 3Let the conversation go to the big questions awe raises instead of small talk.
What the evidence says
ObservationalAwe is theorized and observed to be a prosocial, collective emotion that increases feelings of connection, generosity, and being part of something larger than oneself.
Honest caveat: The relational benefits are inferred from awe’s prosocial findings rather than from trials of shared awe specifically; forcing it socially can also feel performative.
Common mistake
Keeping awe entirely private, or narrating it so much you talk over the experience. The aim is to share the felt moment, not to lecture about it.
IX Coach can encourage you to bring a relationship into your wonder practice and help you reflect on how shared awe changed the connection.
Practice this with IX Coach →