Tips to Improve your ‘Hearing’…and ‘Listening’!!

1)      Know the difference between hearing and listening.  To hear means ‘to perceive’ by the ear.  To listen means ‘to pay attention to a specific perception’.  Big difference.

2)      Practice the ACT of Listening.  Employ body language that expresses this.  Look at the person who is speaking to you.  Make and keep eye contact.  Position your body to show that you are receptive to what others are saying.

3)      Adopt the 2:1 Rule—Listen twice as much as you talk.   Why do you think we have 2 ears and 1 mouth?

4)      While listening ask follow-up questions to demonstrate interest as well as soliciting more information (Ex. “Can you tell me more about..?”)

5)      Play the concentration game—Truly focus on what the speaker is saying.  Try not to jump to conclusions before the speaker is finished speaking, or jump in before they’ve finished.  Listen fully to allow speaker to complete their thought—as you would like too.

6)      Welcome ideas that are not your own, or different from your own. Be open to what others have to say without getting defensive.  Make sure your environment allows others to share ideas.

7)      Be open to listening to the truth and all facts involved—even if things aren’t going very well.

8)      Practice listening to ALL SIDES, before making a decision.  The more you learn, the better prepared you’ll be to make a final decision.

9)       Make a habit of letting others speak FIRST.  The leader who presents his or her ideas first risks cutting off discussions, or worse, stifling goods ideas.