I would ask my dad what he did, and he’d say, ’I listen to people’s problems.’ In some way what he did for a living is in my genes.

Cross reflects on childhood curiosity about her father’s work and the simple, humane way he described it: listening to other people’s problems. The remark frames “listening” as a vocation rather than a task, suggesting that empathy and attentiveness are forms of labor with real social value. By adding that this is “in my genes,” she uses the language of inheritance to describe how temperament and professional inclination can be shaped by family models—how observing a parent’s emotional intelligence can become a blueprint for one’s own identity and career. The quote also gently elevates listening as a foundational skill behind many kinds of success.