Listening Mind map 2

Other listening types

Appreciative Listening is like listening to music

Rapport Listening is when trying to build rapport with others we can engage in a type of listening that encourages the other person to trust and like us. A salesman, for example, may make an effort to listen carefully to what you are saying as a way to promote trust and potentially make a sale

The 10 principles of listening

  1. Stop talking when somebody is speaking we should stop talking to speaker can talk
  1. Prepare yourself to listen Relax Focus on the speaker. Put other things out of mind.
  1. Put the speaker at ease Help the speaker to feel free to speak by nod or encourage them to speak

4. Remove distraction focus on what is being said don't look outside window or doodling

  1. Empathize Try to understand the other person’s point of view. Look at issues from their perspective. Let go of preconceived ideas. By having an open mind we can more fully empathize with the speaker.
  1. Be Patient is a pause, even a long pause, does not necessarily mean that the speaker has finished. Be patient and let the speaker continue in their own time, sometimes it takes time to formulate what to say and how to say it

7. Avoid Personal Prejudice is to try to be impartial. Don't become irritated and don't let the person’s habits or mannerisms distract you from what they are really saying. Everybody has a different way of speaking

  1. Listen to the Tone are volume and tone both add to what someone is saying. A good speaker will use both volume and tone to their advantage to keep an audience attentive; everybody will use pitch, tone and volume of voice in certain situations
  1. Listen for Ideas – Not Just Words
    You need to get the whole picture, not just isolated bits and pieces. Maybe one of the most difficult aspects of listening is the ability to link together pieces of information to reveal the ideas of others
  1. Wait and Watch for Non-Verbal Communication
    Gestures, facial expressions, and eye-movements can all be important. We don’t just listen with our ears but also with our eyes – watch and pick up the additional information being transmitted via non-verbal communication.

Active listening

Non-Verbal Signs of Attentive or Active Listening
This is a generic list of non-verbal signs of listening, in other words people who are listening are more likely to display at least some of these signs. However these signs may not be appropriate in all situations and across all cultures.

Verbal Signs of Attentive or Active Listening

Positive Reinforcement
Although a strong signal of attentiveness, caution should be used when using positive verbal reinforcement. Some positive words of encouragement may be beneficial to the speaker the listener should use them sparingly so as not to distract from what is being said or place unnecessary emphasis on parts of the message

Remembering - The human mind is notoriously bad at remembering details, especially for any length of time. However, remembering a few key points, or even the name of the speaker, can help to reinforce that the messages sent have been received and understood – i.e. listening has been successful.

Questioning
The listener can demonstrate that they have been paying attention by asking relevant questions and/or making statements that build or help to clarify what the speaker has said.

Question can be use to obtain information, start conversation, test understanding and etc.

Closed Questions
Closed questions tend to seek only a one or two word answer (often simply 'yes' or 'no') and, in doing so, limit the scope of the response

Open Questions
Open questions broaden the scope for response since they demand further discussion and elaboration

Reflection
Reflecting is closely repeating or paraphrasing what the speaker has said in order to show comprehension

Clarification
Clarifying involves asking questions of the speaker to ensure that the correct message has been received

Summarization
Repeating a summary of what has been said back to the speaker is a technique used by the listener to repeat what has been said in their own words

Conclusion:
We have taken a closer look at the difference between hearing and listening; the barriers and misconceptions of listening; the types of listening; listening responses; suggestions for good listening and active listening.