LISTENING SKILLS

By Sukriti Bajaj
OVERVIEW
Overview

Listening
Empathy
Barriers Of Listening
Listening In The Workplace
Principles Of Listening
Misconceptions About Listening
Habits To Avoid While Listening
LISTENING
Listening

Listening is the ability to accurately receive and

interpret messages in the communication
process.

Listening is key to all effective communication,

without the ability to listen effectively messages
are easily misunderstood communication
breaks down and the sender of the message can
easily become frustrated or irritated.
Listening

Requires concentration and energy

Involves a psychological connection with the

speaker

Includes a desire and willingness to try and see

things from another's perspective

Requires that we suspend judgment and

evaluation
Listening

Listening skills can lead to:

better customer satisfaction

greater productivity with fewer mistakes

increased sharing of information that in turn

can lead to more creative and innovative work
Listening

Good listening skills also have benefits in our

personal lives, including:

A greater number of friends and social

networks, improved self-esteem and
confidence, higher grades at school and in
academic work and even better health and
general well-being.
Listening

Good listening skills also have benefits in our

personal lives, including:

Studies have shown that, whereas speaking

raises blood pressure, attentive listening can
bring it down.
Listening Process

Perception

Interpretation

Evaluation

Action
EMPATHY
Empathy

Empathy means being open to the ideas of

others and sensitive to their values and feelings:
trying to see things from the other person's
perspective.

It is about demonstrating that you understand,

that you can listen from other person's point of
view and reflect their meaning
Empathy

Each individual has a unique perspective which

should be valued. We each occupy our own
private world and never completely know what's
going on inside other people's minds.

Be prepared to disclose your own feelings and

beliefs to encourage others to do the same: be
open with other people.
BARRIERS OF LISTENING
Mental Barriers

Inattention

Prejudgment

Frame of reference

Closed-mindedness

Pseudo listening
Physical & Other Barriers

Hearing impairment

Noisy surroundings

Speakers appearance

Speakers mannerisms

Lag time
LISTENING IN THE WORKPLACE
Listening In The Workplace

Listening to superiors

Listening to employees

Listening to customers
Listening In The Workplace

Stop talking.

Control external and internal distractions.

Become actively involved.

Separate facts from opinions.

Identify important facts.

Listening In The Workplace

Ask clarifying questions.

Paraphrase to increase understanding.

Capitalize on lag time.

Take notes to ensure retention.

Be aware of gender differences.

Listening To Customers

Defer judgment.

Pay attention to content (not to appearance,

form, or surface issues).

Listen completely.

Listen primarily for the main idea; avoid

responding to sidetracking issues.
Listening To Customers

Do only one thing at a time; listening is a full-

time job.

Control your emotions.

Be silent for a moment after the customer

finishes.

Make affirming statements and invite additional

comments.
PRINCIPLES OF LISTENING
Principles Of Listening

Stop Talking

If we were supposed to talk more than we listen,

we would have two tongues and one ear.- Mark
Twain.

Don't talk, listen. When somebody else is talking

listen to what they are saying, do not interrupt,
talk over them or finish their sentences for them.
Stop, just listen. When the other person has
finished talking you may need to clarify to ensure
you have received their message accurately.
Principles Of Listening

Prepare Yourself to Listen

Relax.

Focus on the speaker. Put other things out of

mind. The human mind is easily distracted by
other thoughts whats for lunch, what time do I
need to leave to catch my train, is it going to rain
try to put other thoughts out of mind and
concentrate on the messages that are being
communicated.
Principles Of Listening

Put the Speaker at Ease

Help the speaker to feel free to speak.

Remember their needs and concerns. Nod or use

other gestures or words to encourage them to
continue.

Maintain eye contact but dont stare show you

are listening and understanding what is being
said.
Principles Of Listening

Remove Distractions

Focus on what is being said.

Dont doodle, shuffle papers, look out the

window, pick your fingernails or similar. Avoid
unnecessary interruptions. These behaviours
disrupt the listening process and send messages
to the speaker that you are bored or distracted.
Principles Of Listening

Empathise

Try to understand the other persons point of

view.

Look at issues from their perspective. Let go of

preconceived ideas. By having an open mind we
can more fully empathise with the speaker. If the
speaker says something that you disagree with
then wait and construct an argument to counter
what is said but keep an open mind to the views
and opinions of others.
Principles Of Listening

Avoid Personal Prejudice

Try to be impartial.

Don't become irritated and don't let the persons

habits or mannerisms distract you from what the
speaker is really saying. Everybody has a different
way of speaking - some people for example have
regional accents or make excessive arm movements,
some people like to pace whilst talking - others like to
sit still. Focus on what is being said and try to ignore
styles of delivery.
Principles Of Listening

Be Patient

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. Never interrupt or
finish a sentence for someone.
Principles Of Listening

Listen to the Tone

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 let these help you to
understand the emphasis of what is being said.
Principles Of Listening

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. With
proper concentration, letting go of distractions,
and focus this becomes easier.
Principles Of Listening

Wait and Watch for Non-Verbal Communication

Gestures, facial expressions, and eye-movements

can all be important.

We dont just listen with our ears but also with our
eyes watch and pick up the additional
information being transmitted via non-verbal
communication.
MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT
LISTENING
Misconceptions About Listening

Listening is a matter of intelligence.

Fact: Careful listening is a learned behavior.

Speaking is a more important part of the

communication process than listening.
Fact: Speaking and listening are equally
important.
Misconceptions About Listening

Listening is easy and requires little energy.

Fact: Active listeners undergo the same
physiological changes as a person jogging.

Listening is an automatic reflex.

Fact: Listening is a conscious, selective
process; hearing is an involuntary act.
Misconceptions About Listening

Speakers are able to command listening.

Fact: Speakers cannot make a person really
listen.

Hearing ability determines listening ability.

Fact: Listening happens mentally between
the ears.
Misconceptions About Listening

Speakers are totally responsible for

communication success.
Fact: Communication is a two-way street.

Listening is only a matter of understanding a

speakers words.
Fact: Nonverbal signals also help listeners gain
understanding.
Misconceptions About Listening

Daily practice eliminates the need for listening

training.
Fact: Without effective listening training, most
practice merely reinforces negative behaviors.

Competence in listening develops naturally.

Fact: Untrained people listen at only 25
percent efficiency.
HABITS TO AVOID WHILE
LISTENING
Habits To Avoid While Listening

Rushing the speaker and making him feel he is

wasting the listeners time.

Interrupting the speaker.

Not looking at the speaker.

Getting ahead of the speaker (finishing her

thoughts).
Habits To Avoid While Listening

Not responding to the speakers requests.

Showing interest in something other than what the

speaker is saying.

Saying Yes, but . . ., as if the listeners mind is

made up.
Habits To Avoid While Listening

Topping the speakers story with That reminds me .

. . or Thats nothing; let me tell you about. . . .

Forgetting what was talked about previously.

Asking too many questions about details.

Activity - 1

Listen a song and write the lyrics.

Activity - 2

Watch an interview and write the transcript.

Activity - 3

Watch a scene and write the transcript.

THANK YOU !