This one just might offend some people but it needs to be said. People pleasing and being an empath/ having empathy oftentimes confuse people. But there is a difference and it's important we all know what that is.
By definition, empathy is the capacity to understand or feel what another person is experiencing from within their frame of reference. In other words, it is the capacity to place yourself in someone else's position. Being an empath additional means that closeness and intimacy can overwhelm you. Spending too much time with someone typically leads to stress, overwhelming feelings, or worries about losing yourself in relationships. However, when you try to express your need for time alone, you absorb your partner’s hurt feelings.
Now a people pleaser is a person who feels a strong urge to please others, even at their own expense. They may feel that their wants and needs do not matter or they will even alter their personality around others. People pleasers will also typically engage in self-destructive behaviors just so they can make others more comfortable.
Empathy is our ability to experience the emotions of others, whereas people-pleasing is the desire to make other people happy, regardless of how it affects us. When thinking about the differences it is crucial to note that empathy deals more with feelings while people pleasing are your actions. People pleasing comes from a deep fear of rejection. The reason behind their actions or helping people out is not because of sympathy but because of a desperate urge to prevent conflict or abandonment. Another and most important thing to note is that being an empath, while relationships may be harder, can promote healthy interpersonal dynamics, people pleasing behavior can lead to transactional relationships and self-neglect.
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