For effective communication, listening skill plays a key role at various levels of any profession or organization. Poor listening skills make a great negative impact and reduces productivity and thus results in conflicts and misunderstandings between the speaker and the listener. What employers look for in a person is not only hard skills but also the soft skills, which includes communication, interpersonal skills, emotional intelligence, etc. Listening skill is a part of soft skill and is of great demand in service industries like education, banking, health, etc. Good listening skill, like any other ability, comes by practice and can be honed by putting in conscious effort.
• Desire to listen - The first step is that a person should be prepared mentally and desirous to listen to the speaker. The focus should be on the speaker without any distractions and concentrate on the message that is communicated.
• Listen without interrupting – When somebody is speaking, one should listen without disturbing him by asking questions in-between. Once he has finished, his speech then any clarification could be made. In short, listen to respond not to react.
• Put the speaker at ease- Audience plays a vital role in putting the speaker at ease and encouraging them to come out with their best ideas in the best way possible. Non-verbal signals like maintaining eye-contact reveal your interest in the speech.
• Avoid distractions – When a person is speaking, avoid behaviours like fidgeting with the pen, checking mobiles or looking out through the window indicates that you are bored with the speech.
• Prevent mind wandering - This is an important distraction where people with untrained mind get easily distracted by random objects or inner thoughts.
• Be Open-minded – Try to listen without judging or being critical of what the other person is speaking. Do not try to justify your thoughts or beliefs and try to be patient without trying to jump into a conclusion.
• Empathize – Try to understand the message from the speaker’s point of view. This can avoid being judgmental. Set aside filters and listen to understand.
• Take notes – Importance of writing or taking notes cannot be denied. While taking notes, we create a permanent record of what is being said besides reinforcing the message. It is evident enough to show the interest of the listener.
• Listen to the tone and emotions – Paralinguistic elements like tone and volume amplify the emotions and convey a lot about the feeling of the person. This can help us to connect better with the speaker.