Active Listening

dynamic list Hear What People argon Re bothy Saying earreach is one of the near important skills you asshole bring forth. How well you bear in headway has a major impact on your job effectiveness, and on the quality of your relationships with some new(prenominal)s. * We comprehend to obtain information. * We listen to see to it. * We listen for enjoyment. * We listen to learn. consecraten all this auditory modality we do, you would think wed be good at it In fact some of us are non, and research suggests that we remember between 25 percent and 50 percent of what we hear.That crockeds that when you blabber to your boss, colleagues, customers or spo intake for 10 minutes, they pay attending to less than half of the conversation. This is dismal Turn it near and it reveals that when you are receiving directions or beingness presented with information, you arent hearing the whole pith either. You fatality the important parts are captured in your 25-50 percent, h owever what if theyre not? Clearly, earreach is a skill that we can all benefit from improving. By beseeming a better listener, you will improve your productivity, as well as your energy to influence, persuade and negotiate.Whats much, youll avoid conflict and misunderstandings. All of these are undeniable for workplace success Good colloquy skills require a lofty level of self-awareness. By understanding your soulfulnessal style of communicating, you will go a abundant way towards creating good and lasting impressions with an otherwise(prenominal)s. Ab emerge vigorous Listening The way to change by reversal a better listener is to normal active listen. This is where you make a conscious effort to hear not only the words that another soul is saying but, more than importantly, deform to understand the comp permite message being sent.In order to do this you mustiness pay attention to the other person very care across-the-boardy. You cannot allow yourself to become distracted by whatever else whitethorn be going on around you, or by forming counter arguments that youll make when the other person stops public speaking. Nor can you allow yourself to get bored, and lose focus on what the other person is saying. All of these contribute to a lack of audience and understanding. If youre finding it particularly difficult to concentrate on what someone is saying, pronounce repeating their words mentally as they say them this will honor their message and help you stay foc exampled.To enhance your sense of hearing skills, you need to let the other person know that you are listening to what he or she is saying. To understand the importance of this, ask yourself if youve ever been engaged in a conversation when you wondered if the other person was listening to what you were saying. You wonder if your message is getting across, or if its even worthwhile continuing to speak. It feels like talking to a brick wall and its something you want to avoid. Acknowledgement can be something as candid as a nod of the head or a simplex uh huh. You arent necessarily agreeing with the person, you are simply indicating that you are listening. Using system actors line and other signs to acknowledge you are listening likewise re estimates you to pay attention and not let your mind wander. You should also try to respond to the oralizer in a way that will twain encourage him or her to continue speaking, so that you can get the information if you need. While drooping and uh huhing says youre interested, an occasional question or comment to recap what has been utter communicates that you understand the message as well.Becoming an Active Listener There are phoebe bird key elements of active listening. They all help you ensure that you hear the other person, and that the other person knows you are hearing what they say. 1. Pay Attention Give the vocaliser your undivided attention, and acknowledge the message. Recognize that non-verbal co mmunication also speaks loudly. * looking for at the speaker directly. * Put a incline distracting thoughts. * Dont mentally prepare a rebuttal * Avoid being distracted by environmental factors. For example, side conversations. Listen to the speakers body expression. 2. Show That Youre Listening Use your own body language and gestures to convey your attention. * nod occasionally. * Smile and use other facial nerve expressions. * note your posture and make sure it is open and inviting. * Encourage the speaker to continue with small verbal comments like yes, and uh huh. 3. Provide Feedback Our ain filters, assumptions, judgments, and beliefs can distort what we hear. As a listener, your role is to understand what is being utter.This may require you to reflect what is being said and ask questions. * Reflect what has been said by paraphrasing. What Im hearing is, and Sounds like you are saying, are great shipway to reflect back. * Ask questions to clarify accredited points. What do you mean when you say. Is this what you mean? * Summarize the speakers comments periodically. If you find yourself responding emotionally to what someone said, say so, and ask for more information I may not be understanding you correctly, and I find myself taking what you said personally.What I thought you effective said is XXX is that what you meant? 4. Defer Judgment Interrupting is a waste of time. It frustrates the speaker and limits full understanding of the message. * Allow the speaker to finish each point forrader asking questions. * Dont interrupt with counter arguments. 5. Respond Appropriately Active listening is a model for respect and understanding. You are gaining information and perspective. You add secret code by attacking the speaker or otherwise putting him or her down. * Be candid, open, and honest in your response. Assert your opinions respectfully. Treat the other person in a way that you think he or she would want to be treated. Listening is the ability to accurately receive messages in the communication change. Listening is key to all effective communication, without the ability to listen in effect messages are easily misunderstood communication breaks down and the sender of the message can easily become frustrated or annoy. Listening is so important that many top employers give regular listening skills instruct for their employees.This is not surprising when you consider thatgood listening skills can egest to better customer satisfaction, greater productivity with fewer mistakes, increased sacramental manduction of information that in turn can lead to more inventive and innovative work. Good listening skills also have benefits in our personal lives, including a greater number of friends and social networks, improved self-esteem and confidence, higher(prenominal) grades in academic work and increased health and wellbeing. Studies have denominaten that, whereas speaking raises blood pressure, listening brings it down.Liste ning is not the same as hearing. Hearing refers to the sounds that you hear, whereas listening requires more than that it requires focus. Listening means paying attention not only to the story, but how it is told, the use of language and voice, and how the other person uses his or her body. In other words, it means being aware of both verbal and non-verbal messages. Your ability to listen effectively depends on the degree to which you perceive and understand these messages. The most basic and powerful way to connect to another person is to listen. still listen.Perhaps the most important thing we ever give each other is our attention. Rachel Naomi Remen We spend a lot of our time listening Adults spend an come of 70% of their time engaged in some sort of communication, of this an reasonable of 45% is spent listening compared to 30% speaking, 16% reading and 9% writing. (Adler, R. et al. 2001). 10 Principles of Listening A good listener will listen not only to what is being said, but also to what is left voiceless or only partially said. Listening involves observing body language and noticing inconsistencies between verbal and non-verbal messages.For example, if someone tells you that they are happy with their life but through gritted teeth or with tears filling their eyes, you should consider that the verbal and non-verbal messages are in conflict, they maybe dont mean what they say. Listening requires you to concentrate and use your other senses in addition to simply hearing the words spoken. Listening is not the same as hearing and in order to listen effectively you need to use more than just your ears. 1. Stop talk of the town If we were supposed to talk more than we listen, we would have two tongues and one ear. marking Twain. Dont talk, listen.When somebody else is talking listen to what they are saying, do not interrupt, talk over them or finish their article of faiths for them. Stop, just listen. When the other person has correct talking you ma y need to clarify to ensure you have received their message accurately. 2. Prepare Yourself to Listen Relax. Focus on the speaker. Put other things out of mind. The human mind is easily distracted by other thoughts whats for lunch, what time do I need to leave to assure my train, is it going to rain try to put other thoughts out of mind and concentrate on the messages that are being communicated. 3.Put the Speaker at knack Help the speaker to feel free to speak. Remember their needs and concerns. Nod or use other gestures or words to encourage them to continue. mention eye contact but dont stare show you are listening and understanding what is being said. 4. Remove Distractions Focus on what is being said dont doodle, shuffle papers, look out the window, pick your fingernails or similar. Avoid unnecessary interruptions. These behaviours disrupt the listening process and send messages to the speaker that you are bored or distracted. 5. Empathize enterprise to understand the o ther persons point of view.Look at issues from their perspective. allow go of preconceived ideas. By having an open mind we can more fully empathise with the speaker. If the speaker says something that you disagree with then wait and stool an argument to counter what is said but keep an open mind to the views and opinions of others. (See our pageWhat is Empathy? ) 6. Be Patient A pause, even a long pause, does not necessarily mean that the speaker has finished. Be patient and let the speaker continue in their own time, sometimes it takes time to excogitate what to say and how to say it.Never interrupt or finish a sentence for someone. 7. Avoid Personal Prejudice Try to be impartial. Dont become irritated and dont let the persons habits or mannerisms distract you from what they are authentically saying. Everybody has a different way of speaking some commonwealth are for example more nervous or shy than others, some have regional accents or make excessive arm movements, some peo ple like to pace whilst talking others like to sit still. Focus on what is being said and try to ignore styles of delivery. 8. Listen to the ToneVolume and tone both add to what someone is saying. A good speaker will use both volume and tone to their advantage to keep an audience careful everybody will use pitch, tone and volume of voice in certain situations let these help you to understand the emphasis of what is being said. 9. Listen for Ideas Not Just Words You need to get the whole picture, not just isolated bits and pieces. Maybe one of the most difficult aspects of listening is the ability to link together pieces of information to reveal the ideas of others.With proper concentration, letting go of distractions, and focus this becomes easier. 10. Wait and Watch for Non-Verbal Communication Gestures, facial expressions, and eye-movements can all be important. We dont just listen with our ears but also with our eyes watch and pick up the additional information being transmi tted via non-verbal communication. Do not jump to conclusions about what you see and hear. You should ceaselessly seek clarification to ensure that your understanding is correct.