Relatability (wakarimi)
Overview
Wakarimi is youth slang that turns the feeling of "I get it" or "I relate" into a noun. The ending "-mi" is a suffix that turns adjectives and verbs into nouns, and it has the same structure as tsurami (painfulness), ureshimi (happiness), and yabami (craziness). "Wakarimi ga fukai" (the wakarimi runs deep) is used to mean "I relate so much," and "wakarimi shika nai" (nothing but wakarimi) is used to mean "I completely agree."
The difference between wakaru (I get it) and wakarimi is the strength of the feeling and how casual the expression is. Wakaru is a calm agreement, while wakarimi is relating with real feeling. Wakarimi is used with the excitement of "That's exactly how I felt too!"
Question boxes and wakarimi
When an answer from a question box is shared on social media, a reaction there like "wakarimi ga fukai" also works as a compliment to the person answering. There are situations where answers that people relate to emotionally get spread or stay in people's memories.
Answers that create wakarimi have things in common. One of them is being based on a specific experience. For example, instead of writing "You should do X," you write "I've struggled with X too." Being specific enough that readers feel "This is about me" is also one factor that creates wakarimi.
Beyond wakarimi
Wakarimi is powerful as an expression of relating, but it doesn't necessarily deepen the conversation. Going from "wakarimi" to "So what do I do?" can be what deepens the exchanges in a question box.
As the person answering a question box, you draw out wakarimi from readers while also encouraging the actions and thinking that come after it. You might write, for example, "I was the same way. But things changed when I tried this." You open their hearts by relating to them, and give them a push with specific advice. Wakarimi can be the way in, and from there readers may start to act differently.