How to be a better listener (Effective-Active Listening)

Improve your listening skills, remove barriers, become an effective listener and learn how to listen actively.

00:41 External distractions
01:03 Internal barriers
02:34 Active listening

Have you ever met someone who said they had poor listening skills? Probably not. Have you ever met anyone who you thought was a poor listener? Almost certainly. Not many people think they have poor listening skills and yet it is one of the most sought after qualities in the workplace.

Some of the things we can do to improve our listening are straightforward – such as removing physical distractions: phone calls, text notifications and interruptions.

It gets a little more difficult when we have to deal with internal barriers which are summed up nicely by Stephen Covey’s “Most people don’t listen with the intent to understand, they listen with the intent to reply”. So often we tune out of conversations as we think we know what’s coming, or we want to come back with a quick reply, or perhaps we want to put the speaker down – the list goes on.

Many people also think that their role as a listener is really as a judge or advice giver. This can really put the speaker off, especially when all the really want is to be heard.

Active listening is a way of showing a speaker that you are actively listening to them. You do this by getting rid of distractions and ‘turning off’ listening to reply inclinations, then show the listener that you are actually interested in what they have to say.

Body language is important as is showing the speaker that you understand by giving them an understanding response.

Communication builds and sustains relationships – wherever they are and whoever they’re with. Being a good listener is a life skill that we can always be worked on and improved.

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