How to improve effective listening skills To improve

How to improve effective listening skills? To improve the overall success of an organization, start with perfecting employee communication. Listening is a major and often ignored part of the communication process. How well you listen has a major impact on your job effectiveness.

What ever the reason listening skills is a part of good communication skills. We spend 45% of our communication time on listening. Good communication skills require a high level of selfawareness. By understanding your personal style of communicating, you will go a long way towards creating good and lasting impressions with others. How well you listen has a major impact on your job effectiveness

Why do we listen? n We listen to obtain information n We listen to understand n We listen for enjoyment n We listen to learn

What is a good listening skill indicates? n n n n Pay attention Show that you are listening Defer judgment Respond Appropriately Treat listening as a challenging mental task Avoid emotional involvement Providing feedback

Pay attention: n n n Look at the speaker directly Avoid being distracted by environmental factors Give the speaker your full attention Listen to the speaker’s body language Avoid side conversations when listening in a group setting

Show that you are listening: You can use your own body language and gestures to convey your attention. Like, n n n Nod occasionally, Smile and use other facial expressions. Encourage the speaker to continue with small verbal comments like yes and uh hah

Defer judgment Interrupting is a waste of time. It frustrates the speaker and limits full understanding of the message. n Allow the speaker to finish. n Don’t interrupt with counter arguments n Avoid interrupting. It's rude and you cannot talk and listen at the same time.

Respond Appropriately Active listening is a model for respect and understanding. You are gaining information and perspective. You add nothing by attacking the speaker or otherwise putting Him or her down. n Be open and honest in your response. n Assert your opinions respectfully. n Treat the other person as he or she would want to be treated.

Treat listening as a challenging mental task: Listening to an academic lecture is not a passive act. At least it shouldn’t be. You need to concentrate on what is said so that you can process the information into your notes.

Avoid emotional involvement: When you are too emotionally involved in listening, you tend to hear what you want to hear what is actually being said. Try to remain objective and open-minded.

Provide feedback Our personal filters, assumptions, judgments and beliefs can distort what we hear. As a listener, your role is to understand what is being said. This may require you to reflect what is being said and ask questions. n Reflect what has been said by paraphrasing. “What I’m hearing is…” and “Sounds like you are saying…” are great ways to reflect back. n Ask questions to clarify certain points. “What do you mean when you say…” “Is this what you mean? ” n Summarize the speaker’s comments periodically

Best ways to improve listening skills n n Listen to something you enjoy (Music, News and watching movies) Listen for keywords Accept the fact that you are not going to understand everything Keep cool when you do not understand, even if you continue to not understand for a long time. n Do not translate into your native language n Listen for the gist of the conversation (General idea).

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