Listen . . . & PROFIT

Listen, Listen, Listen...How well do you listen? If a top customer came into your office right now and you asked him or her, "How well do I listen, and what do I do when I listen?"

What would they say, assuming they had just swallowed some truth serum?

If that top customer would say something that you wouldn't like, think of the opportunities you can gain by lifting your listening expertise to a higher level.

Here are five practical and powerful strategies to improve your listening and help propel YOUR BUSINESS and career to MORE SUCCESS. . .and MORE PROFIT.

1. Withhold judgement. . . get curious

Judgment is a significant barrier to being an exceptional listener.
When you're tempted to judge a person as not worth listening to, or judge that someone has nothing of value to tell you, step back, withhold that judgment and... GET CURIOUS.

2. Identify the 20 MOST IMPORTANT people to your business.

After you've done that put them on a piece of paper and put the paper in your line of gaze at your desk, and/or in your diary. Listen purposely to these people at a very high and focused level of listening. Revise the list often.
Listening at this high, focused level is listening with your feeling tone ... it's really stepping into the other person's shoes. This type of listening can take significant energy so use it selectively with people on your most important list. Some of the people on the list should probably be your fellow team members.
Don't attempt to use this level with everyone, as your listening will descend to mediocrity.

3. When you're listening to someone... don't be anywhere else.

You never get a second chance to listen to someone the first time, and if you're daydreaming, that might be the precise moment the person is sharing a key information bit.

4. Honour silence.

This is a classical trait of good listeners. People of non-Western background are more comfortable with silence than those of Western background. People of Western background fill in the silence with the sound of their voice.
You don't learn much from the sound of YOUR voice. You DO learn much from the sound of another's voice, for example your customer's.

5. Plan to listen.

Before you go into a listening situation take a moment to ask yourself, AND answer these questions.

• What are the possibilities?
• Am I ready to listen to that, which is inconsistent with my expectations?
• What do I know about this person that will help me listen?
• What are my emotional triggers? (Emotional triggers are anything that causes an emotional response to rise up inside you, and which potentially can distract you from listening in the moment). Examples of emotional triggers could be the words 'racist, downsizing' politician'. Awareness of your emotional triggers before you listen can help you stay focused while listening in the moment.
• What do I know about this person to help me listen better?
• What did I learn about listening from my last meeting?
• Are there any simple things I'm overlooking?
• How can I minimise misunderstanding? When two people are conversing, they're never exactly talking about the same thing. Preparation for this fact can increase the amount of information meaning that you share with another person.

Your listening is a skill that can be developed with practice. Remember this Scottish verse.

"His thoughts were slow, his words were few, and never formed to glisten. But he was a joy for all his clan . . . for you should have heard him listen!".

Good listening!