Effective listening

Eliminating defensive reactions will make you a more effective listener. You will become more open and accessible to others - and be perceived as such. 

When conducting a coaching or counseling session with an employee, it is important that you also be an effective listener. Give your undivided attention. This means that you remove all distractions, such as your telephone and e-mail, and maintain eye contact. 

Become comfortable with some silence. Discomfort with silence tempts speakers to fill every second with words or sounds. This trait manifests itself in vocalized pauses such as uh , repeated use of like and you know , hooking sentences together with and , and failure to use pauses for effect. Listen to a recording of yourself practicing the speech to see if you have these tendencies. Listeners do not expect a perfectly fluent speech, but speakers should work to communicate as smoothly as possible. 

Effective listening involves skill. Here are a few points about listening to keep in mind for an interview ... 

Now here s probably the most challenging part. Effective listening involves a lot of letting go of our own desires, perceptions, fears, and assumptions. Many in business miss amazing opportunities to make more money with better structured deals simply because they re much too wrapped up in what they re willing to lose, gain, or how it will make them look. Let it go. In order to let go and listen, you need to get out of your own way. You need to get out of your place of comfort and ease. 

Humbert, P. Top ten tools for effective listening. Accessed January 24, 2011. 

Humbert, P Top Ten Tools For Effective Listening, accessed online, http //www.philiphumbert.com /Articles/lOEffectiveListening.html, January 24, 2011. 

Typical Objections to These Effective Listening Techniques... 

Monday mornings are usually a good time to practice your effective listening. Just start a conversation with a coworker by saying, How was your weekend From there, just probe and reflect In lOmin, you can actually get to know the other person a little better and show that you re interested in them. You can then utilize this approach in more important business conversations. 

Frame PSM in terms of their interests. People pay more attention to information that is relevant to them, than to items of general or academic interest. For example, "PSM provides a cost-effective means of improving our company s safety performance" addresses two senior executive concerns corporate earnings and exposure to liability. The discussion is framed in terms of the listener s interest it also focuses on results. 

The key to effective interviewing is to spend more time listening than talking. Approach each interview with an open mind, with as few preconceived ideas as possible about the facility, process, or individual you re reviewing. Remember that your goal in interviewing is not to fill out a form but to elicit essential information that will help guide your PSM system development. 

In addition to understanding the PSM system and its implementation, in-hou e trainers need skills development training to enable tiiem to fulfill their roles effectively. Everyone has had the dismal experience of listening to speakers or teachers whose command of their subject may be excellent, but who are incapable of conveying it in a useful, much less interesting, manner. To help avoid this, be selective in recruiting in-house trainer candidates the best people for this task have confidence, enthusiasm, and an ability to communicate well. 

Inspection Inspection is probably the most common way to monitor project performance. It is handled by trained inspectors as well as by the project manager. Get out into the area where the work is performed and observe what is going on. Inspection is an effective way to see whether project specifications are being met, as well as whether there is an unnecessary waste or unsafe work practice. Inspections should be unannounced and on a random schedule. However, they should also be open and direct. Ask questions and listen to explanations. 

The Winds are the Angels of the Lord, strong in power, which effect the Word of God, and listen unto his voice, and his flaming Ministers which accomplish his pleasure. ... 

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