Tweet

Listen and Learn

Guest post by: Kim Freedman

Article Overview: Listening isn't just a nice to have soft skill. With organizations and individuals so fervently focused on the bottom line, actively listening has never been as important as it is now. A focus on listening can lead to more effective teamwork, higher productivity, fewer conflicts and errors, enhanced innovation and problem-solving, improved recruiting and retention, superior customer relations and more. As authors on leadership development have noted through the years, listening is not just a nice thing to do, it’s essential!

Listen and Learn



With organizations and individuals so fervently focused on the bottom line, it’s easy to ignore “softer” goals, such as listening well. All that touchy-feeling stuff is a waste of my time, you might say or think.

On the contrary! A focus on listening can lead to more effective teamwork, higher productivity, fewer conflicts and errors, enhanced innovation and problem-solving, improved recruiting and retention, superior customer relations and more. As authors on leadership development have noted through the years, listening is not just a nice thing to do, it’s essential!

“Make the human element as important as the financial or the technical element,” wrote Stephen Covey in his seminal book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. “You save tremendous amounts of time, energy and money when you tap into the human resources of a business at every level. When you listen, you learn.”

As long ago as 1966, Peter Drucker, author of The Effective Executive and numerous other books, emphasized the importance of listening to both self and others as an essential step in bringing to light everyone’s role as contributors to the organization’s overall success.

Likewise, studies in Emotional Intelligence (EI) over the past couple of decades have found that leaders actually “infect” the workplace (for better or for worse) with their attitudes and energy. To understand and influence these flows of emotions and motivational states, leaders need to be able to practice empathic listening skills.

In their book Primal Leadership, authors Daniel Goleman, Richard E. Boyatzis and Annie McKee, describe how varying leadership styles rely on listening skills for their effectiveness.



Visionary leaders listen to values held by individuals within the group, enabling them to explain their own goals for the organization in a way that wins support.



Coaching leaders listen one-on-one to employees, establish rapport and trust, and help employees help themselves in matters of performance and information gathering.



Affiliative leaders listen for employees’ emotional needs and strive to honor and accommodate those needs in the workplace.



Democratic leaders elicit ideas and participation by listening to everyone’s opinions and information.

In Seven Habits, Covey cites numerous examples of successful business deals and resolved workplace issues in pointing out the importance—and power—of empathic listening versus mechanical, or perfunctory, listening. He also acknowledges that it takes time and practice to become adept at listening empathically. Here are some tips for sharpening your listening skills.



Develop your curiosity. This helps with Covey’s suggestion: Seek first to understand. Genuine curiosity is felt by others and helps to open up their speech and your listening.



Pay attention to your listening. Replay conversations you’ve had and assess whether you listened well.



Seek feedback. Ask coworkers, employees, bosses, clients/customers and suppliers to assess your listening skills.



Work with a coach. Coaches can help you discover ways to listen better not only to those you work with, but also to yourself.

Listening better will reward you with an entirely new level of communication and problem-solving skills, for empathic listening requires the ability to see multiple points of view in any given situation.

Related Articles
  The Power of Listening
  Communications Skills 101
  4 Ls of Entrepreneurship
  The Art of Effective Listening
  The Customer Can't Say Yes When You Are Talking
  Can You Hear Me Now? Great Executive Coaches Are Not Just Great Talkers They're Great Listeners
  Listening - The Critical Ingredient In Employee Development
  2011 Business Growth Strategies: #3 Get Closer to Your Markets
  Even When It Is Quiet. . . We Should Listen
  "We Can't Communicate"
  Huh? What?
  Which Did You Do - Lose Your Temper or Self-Confidence
  How to Listen like a Detective
  Driving to Sales Greatness
  Achieve Your Dreams And Never Ever Give Up
  Rules of Sales Engagement for the Recession
  Listening Below the Surface of the Words
  LEADER LISTEN PEOPLE, RIGHT NOW - NEVER LATER.
  Sales Skills For Service Professionals Part 2
  How to attract more leads in online marketing?

Article Tags: active listening, effective teamwork, emotional intelligence, innovation, lead, leader, leadership development, learning, listening, productivity, soft skill



Related Forum Posts
Re: What inspires you? - Inspiration is nothing it is what you called to do? Some work for money, some work for satisfaction, some work because they have priorities in life. It is the passion to do something for achievement or to show that you can do it by using one's talent. I know there are people who are doing great things with their limited skill sets. So, my view point about inspiration is to Dream Big and try to achieve it. I would rather add "Listen to your self". Listen to Inner guide and follow it. You will reach great heights. Robert
Re: What inspires you? - [quote="KH_Global":2o5p0kh7]Inspiration is nothing it is what you called to do? Some work for money, some work for satisfaction, some work because they have priorities in life. It is the passion to do something for achievement or to show that you can do it by using one's talent. I know there are people who are doing great things with their limited skill sets. So, my view point about inspiration is to Dream Big and try to achieve it. I would rather add "Listen to your self". Listen to Inner guide and follow it. You will reach great heights. Robert[/quote:2o5p0kh7] so true
Lisa Shepherd Story - Great story! I love the Earn - Learn - Equity - it's very relavent for new entrepreneurs.
Self Development Tips - I find this old article about self development and very liked it. I think here a lot practical rules! As long as you are still alive, you are capable of changing and growing. You can do anything you want to do, be anything you want to be. Listen to some positive thoughts on how to continue your self development and then apply them in your own life. 1. Accept personal responsibility for your own growth; no one can do it for you. What you do today will determine your readiness for tomorrow. 2. Take time every day to do something for yourself. 3. Take classes to stay current in your field of expertise. The world is changing rapidly and you must learn to manage change to avoid obsolescence. The way Will Rogers put this was that "Even if you are on the right track, if you just sit there you will get run over." 4. Listen to cassette tapes on personal and professional growth topics. 5. Never look back to the past - you only can control your actions in this instant, so what should you be doing right now? 6. Learn from "other people's experience" rather then having to try everything for yourself. It shortens the time needed to learn. 7. Dealing with a problem helps you learn patience and strengthens your management skills; it is good mental exercise. 8. Analyze, in a non-judgmental way, mistakes in which you were involved. It will help you to prevent these in the future. 9. Reward yourself when you catch yourself working on the most important priorities. 10. Never say something can't or won't be done. Keep looking for ways to do it. 11. After attending a seminar, report to your boss or other people in your organization, what the most important things are that you learned from the program. 12. Eliminate one time waster a week from your life. 13. Read a minimum of one chapter of a book a day. 14. Read a minimum of one book a month. 15. Be hungry for what life has to offer and go for it. 16. Decide what you really desire to do - then do it. 17. When you have the option of reading a book or listening to the cassette tape version of the program, listen to the tape. It will be more to the point and can be done while you are driving, jogging/walking, or getting other routine things done. 18. Develop a "master mind" group of four or five people with whom you can openly discuss ideas in a nonjudgmental way. 19. Develop yourself as a resource for others by networking. Find out who does what, when, and for whom. You may find excellent contacts for your future needs and for the needs of others you meet. 20. Work for balance in your life goals: family, financial, professional, social, spiritual, recreational. 21. Always keep your goals in mind as you start a new activity. 22. If you do a lot of work with the calculator, run the machine with the hand you don't use for writing. 23. Do not be afraid of failing at something. You can learn and change as a result of it. 24. The most difficult projects are opportunities for your biggest successes just as the most difficult people could become your strongest allies. 25. Put up pictures of your dreams and goals where you will see them frequently. They will remind you and aid you in focusing and visualizing your goal. 26. We all have the same 24 hours in a day. Learn from those people who get more done than you do. Perhaps you can find a way to improve what you are doing. 27. Find a nonjudgmental mentor who will help you by providing feedback, suggestions, challenges and support. 28. Identify some "models" and observe their style and actions. Do not copy them but learn from their experiences. 29. Learn from the errors you see others make as well as from their successes. 30. Fill your mind with positive ideas, thoughts and inspirations and you will have no room left for the negative. 31. Trade jobs with someone so you gain additional experience. 32. Ask for and accept lateral moves in the organization so you learn more about the entire operation. 33. Do more than your "self doubts" say you can. 34. Have confidence that you can get through and learn from anything and everything you experience. 35. Reward yourself with a treat when you have completed a learning objective. 36. Keep a daily journal, recording your thoughts, ideas, feelings and personal growth progress. 37. Ask questions, listen, then ask more questions. You will learn as well as help others learn. 38. Ask yourself, "How can I manipulate my fate?" 39. Do things with someone you respect. They will be supportive of you and you will learn from interacting with them. 40. Seek new information on projects for which you have responsibility. Look for new "ah ha" ideas all the time. 41. Challenge yourself to learn something new every day. 42. Remain flexible and constantly adaptable. 43. Be open to others and sincerely interested in them. You can learn from everyone you meet. 44. Mentally rehearse a new skill. Your subconscious does not know the difference between actual practice and mental rehearsal. 45. Keep a record of what you accomplished the previous day(s)/week. If you did not accomplish as much as you wanted, it gives you extra incentive to do better in the next time period. 46. Make notes of the questions you want answered. Then as the answers come to you, jot them down next to the question. 47. Work on overcoming personal, nonproductive habits; for example: overeating, smoking, gossip. 48. Keep an "Idea File" ring binder or notebook in which you record all new ideas. At least once a week in a standing appointment with yourself, review your ideas. Very interesting to know other practical self development tips.
Hello from Newbie - Hi everyone: I am newbie and a freelance bookkeeping & accounting entrepreneur. Hope I enjoy my time here. Will Learn from you and share my thoughts and ideas with you.


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

How To Master The Ins and Outs of Google+

Adapting to Technology and the Internet

Expanding Your Business By Franchising

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.