Listening is a knack that one has to cultivate in order to experience the benefits of clear communication. Bad communication is the root cause of many problems and bad listening is the root cause of bad communication.
Here are some tips to improve your listening skills:
- Give your full attention to the speaker. Maintain eye contact with the speaker as that will keep you focussed and avoid distractions of any kind.
- People are always thinking about how they will respond rather than thinking about what the person is saying. Don’t worry about your response; in fact, the more clearly you listen the more clearly you will be able to respond.
- Avoid interrupting the speaker. Let him/her make his/her point and then you only make yours. Interruption is also a sign of disrespect apart from being an obstacle to the act of listening.
- Sometimes even when you are actively listening you might not get what the speaker is saying. Be sure to ask and get your doubts cleared. Only then you are part of successful communication.
While hearing, is purely a physical act, listening needs some amount of processing. Focussed listening will get you to connect with the speaker in an emotional way too. The speaker will also acknowledge the effort you are making to listen to him/her. You too should encourage the speaker with timely nods, gestures or smiles or any other gesture that reflects the speaker’s emotion.
It is then that communication becomes beyond words. It becomes about human beings really, strongly & truly connecting.
