A skill, according the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, is a learned power of doing something competently: a developed aptitude or ability. The skill of listening is a skill that I believe everyone should have but most people lack. Many people do not realize that listening is not merely the act of hearing a sound but of paying close attention to what someone is saying and trying to understand the message that they are trying to relate to you. Most times people say they are listening when in all actuality they are merely hearing you but not even attempting to understand what is being spoken of. The advantages of being a good listener are vast. This skill can positively affect many parts of our everyday life and interaction with people. …show more content…
The skill of listening would prove very effective in the workplace because employers would realize what would motivate their employees and their employees would in turn be motivated and cause an increase in production. In foreign affairs listening would decrease the misunderstanding that so often can develop into animosities that can one day escalate to full blown wars. Just imagine the possibilities if listening became an attribute that people seek to achieve wholeheartedly. I am not trying to present a utopian world but I am suggesting that if more people placed more emphasis not just on being heard but on really listening as well, many things would change and many conflicts would be avoided. From the beginning of time humanity has had a problem listening. Even going as far back as biblical days, Eve was deceived because she did not listen carefully. The Serpent only changed one word but because she did not listen carefully she did not grasp the vast difference in the information that was conveyed to her from both sides. So, how does one become a good listener? First and foremost, it is important to understand that listening is not just sitting and hearing someone speak. It is also taking careful thought of what they are saying and trying to understand their point of view. It is also essential to let the other party know you are listening to them by responding and asking questions relevant to the topic on hand. Body
1. Gregorian chant consists of a single-lined melody and is monophonic in texture. This piece also consists of these basic structures as well as not having any harmory or counterpoint. This piece performed by U of I faculty member Steven Rickards, is sung a cappella.
Listening is a skill that requires active, rather than passive, participation to advance shared understanding and minimise misinterpretation. Lang, Floyd and Beine (2000) describe active listening as a skill that ‘focuses on attending to patients’ clues, ie, utterances and/or behaviors that are not explicit but may have special meaning and suggest unshared ideas, concerns, and expectations’. This essay will discuss how active listening strategies such as analysing and displaying non-verbal body language, clarifying meaning and accuracy, expressing understanding for the speaker’s feelings through empathy and silence contribute to effective communication by encouraging the speaker to convey his or her thoughts, building trust and
Talking and listening are essential life skills. The ability to talk in order to communicate and exchange ideas and information, to negotiate with others, to express feelings and emotions, allows human beings to function well in the world and to be full and active members of society. Communication, to be effective, requires the ability to listen, to understand and to make sense of what is heard. On the personal level, when we listen, we give attention to the other person in such a way as to allow them to feel heard, understood and therefore respected. In that way, listening is more than
A vital aspect of interpersonal communication is the style in which one listens. While every individual possesses their own preferred method of listening in communication, it can be enlightening to analyze our own strengths and weaknesses so as to maximize effectual communication. Within the confines of four main listening style categories, I have chosen those which best describe my own personal listening style.
Listening skills play a significant role in evaluating communication capabilities in the workplace throughout the globe. It affects all kinds of interactions and becomes part of problem solving. Thought communication encounters, workers are able to learn why they trust or distrust each
The first reaction of most people when they consider listening as a possible method for dealing with human beings is that listening cannot be sufficient in itself, Because it is passive, they feel, listening does not communicate anything to the speaker. Actually, nothing could be farther from the truth.
The ability to listen well is an important tool for understanding others. Sadly, very few people know how to listen well. In fact, most people can think of only one or two good listeners in their lives. Listening is not simply agreeing - it is much more. Good listeners are able to better understand and respond to others, complete assignments accurately, settle disagreements before they escalate, and establish rapport with difficult people.
Listening is more complex, and it encourages one to analyze and think about an idea, rather than to simply accept it (or “hear” it). Hearing is a skill that is beneficial for every aspect of life. As long as we have our ability to hear, we will always perceive different sounds, music, and voices. Listening, however, is beneficial to us in specific instances. It is important for us to attain good listening skills in education, the work force, and in our relationships with others in order to succeed. Good listening in education will bring about confident participation in class discussions; good listening in the workplace will lead to cooperation and good teamwork among colleagues; good listening in relationships is healthy and positive, for it is important to hear what an individual has to say in order to know how they feel.
Listening is an important form of communication. Unfortunately, many people who do not know how to listen believe they can listen well. They often say "I have been doing this all of my life of course I can listen". Listening is not inherited, or a personality trait, it is a skill that must be worked on and practiced.
Many believe listening skills are a necessity to being successful. It’s said that god gave us two ears so we can listen twice as much as we talk, and leaders should follow this saying so they do not miss any important information (Rai).
Listening is more than just hearing. The process of listening involves receiving and constructing meaning, and responding to verbal and/or nonverbal messages. In other words, listening is not always easy and being a good listener is all about developing listening skills. To receive messages appropriately we have to listen actively. Active listening can be broken down into three important skills; first of all you have to reflect the feelings that the person is communicating, secondly reflect the content that they are communicating and finally ask good, meaningful questions.
In this class, I’m learning quite a bit about listening. I’m learning how to listen and communicate better with people, especially when the things I’m listening to and talking about are more on the sensitive side of topics. I’ve always been a very closed off person, even from friends and family. I️ would have a hard time expressing my thoughts and emotions verbally and would get upset with people when they would try to pry. Friends and family would get angry with me when I️ wouldn’t talk or wouldn’t listen to them when all they were really doing was trying to help me. Very frequently when out in public it’s easy to observe this same kind of people or behavior. There are many more people out in the world with poor listening and communicating skills than you may think. For instance, those who get flustered when discussing certain topics whether it’s at the store or a coffee shop. If you like people watching, then you know what I’m talking about.
Although emphasis usually lies on being a competent speaker, listening is a key skill that many business personnel do not exercise enough. For cross cultural communication, attentive listening is critical to be able to understand meanings, read between the lines and enable to empathize with the speaker.
Developing better communication skills is more than talking to someone to get a point across. Listening and understanding the key components of the conversation is a part of having communication skills. By listening, issues would be processed better which would help establish a common ground between the people that are having a conversation.
Better listening leads to better recollection of important info this results in fewer mistakes. Thus, attention to good listening technique is important when complex issues are involved.