Art of Listening

What is listening ? It is an active part of communication. It is the first half of communication. It is the process of using ears, eyes and brain to gather the meaning and the feeling behind what the speaker is saying. .It is and attitude towards other people and what they are attempting to express. . . . * TYPES OF LISTINING ====> ¤CONTENT LISTENING => The goal is to understand and retain information imparted by the speaker. Basically information flows from speaker to listener. ¤CRITICAL LISTENING => The goal is to evaluate the message at several levels, the logic of the arguments, strength of evidence and validity of conclusions, implications of the message for the listener and his organisation, the speaker's intentions and motives and the omission of any relevant point. ¤EMPATHIC LISTENING => The goal is to understand the speaker's feelings, needs and wants in order to help him solve a problem. . . . . . . ¤ACTIVE LISTENING => Psychiatrist Carl Rogers developed this technique to help people resolve their differences, but it can be used in any listening situation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . *LISTINING TO CUSTOMER=> Good listening is one of the most important skills to have in a service organisation. It is needed to slove complex problems quickly and stay competitive in the market. . . . . *BARRIERS TO LISTENING => Ask yourself these seven questions: Do I prejudice the speaker? Do I fake attention? Do I easily get distracted? Am I in the habit of judging prematurely? Do I listen only for facts? Am I in the habit of day dreaming while listening? Do I always react emotionally? . . . . . . . . . . . . If the answers to most of them are in affirmative, there is a need to re-look your listening habits because it means that there are some barriers to listening which prevent you from being a good listener. *QUALITIES OF AN EFFECTIVE LISTENER => Take interest, Ask clarifying questions, Provide feedback, Keep your mind open, Maintain the same level of eye contact, Respect the speaker, Listen 'between the lines', Avoid invalidating language, Express appreciation, Learn the name of person talking, Understand feelings, Avoid argument, Do not switch off mentally. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . *CONCLUSION ===> Concluding the whole discussion one has to strongly believe that the listening is an art. Listening does not mean only hearing but listening is hearing plus attending plus understanding plus concentrating plus remembering plus critically grasping and processing information.