Talane’s Coaching Classic Tip for the Week, September 8, 2009
Listen Profoundly
Most people like to think that they are good listeners. Very few people actually are. Think about the people you know. Of all your friends and family, how many really listen to you? Listening is an art and, like any life skill, takes practice. No one ever taught us how to listen; we were taught to speak. Stop worrying so much about what you are going to say. What really attracts people is not what you say, but how well you listen. Listening and keeping your stories to yourself will lead to an unexpected result. The person who does the most talking ends up feeling he knows and trusts the listener. It seems like it should be in reverse, that the person listening should feel he knows the talker, but this isn’t the case. A well-known reporter confirmed this. He said that the way to build trust is to listen and keep on listening and then keep on listening some more. As a rule of thumb, talk 20 percent of the time and listen 80 percent. Try this today and see what happens. You might be amazed at the things people will tell you when you really listen. People will love you for listening. Listening profoundly is not easy; it takes practice. Experiment. Try listening for three minutes before you say your piece. The more profoundly you listen, the more people will enjoy being around you and the more opportunities you will attract.
Copyright © 2009 by Talane LLC. All rights reserved
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Hi Talane,
ReplyDeleteI have always been better listener than speaker, but I thought this was a wrong thing. Thanks for let me see the other side of the coin.
(Sorry for my bad English. We, Spanish people don't speak / write it very well)