Here are 5 Benefits of Being a Great Listener
There are courses, books and videos on polished and professional speaking skills, but what about listening skills? Why do so many people crave the company of a good listener and if you are one, notice how you learn a lot about people's likes, dislikes, loves and worries?
Listening is an area we would all benefit from sharpening up. People tend to spend more time evaluating what the speaker is saying or figuring out their responses, than they do actually listening.
Ernest Hemingway tells us how to do it well - “When people talk, listen completely. Most people never listen.”
Here are 5 benefits of being a great listener:
Respect
When you listen with full attention, you are communicating respect. By offering speakers respect, you are likely to gain theirs in return. By being respectful while someone is speaking, it also demonstrates to others around you, your leadership style and that you value people by giving them your full attention.
Information
Attentive listening helps you learn more about others. Knowing more about people is helpful in your professional life as well as personal life. Imagine the benefits when you understand your colleagues, manager, customers, partner, friends and family members better.
Greater Clarity
Careful listening helps you clearly understand what people are trying to say and therefore assists to avoid some of the confusion, misunderstandings and potential conflicts that are common in conversations. Careful listening offers an opportunity to really understand. As Covey said - “Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.” so forget about the reply, just listen and seek to truly understand what the person is saying.
Increased Likability
People want to do business with people they like. You may also find that as you listen to people more, you find more in common, really understand their views and actually, you like them more.
Better Relationships
Listening creates a feeling of respect, connection and goodwill in personal and professional relationships. Improve your relationships by listening non-judgmentally to what others have to say. The more you listen without judgment, the more freedom speakers have to find their own solutions to problems.
As with most other social skills, to master listening, practice is required. Luckily, the world is full of people who have a story to tell and would welcome the opportunity to share it with you.
