The Art of Listening
As a child, our parents taught us how to speak to be able to learn how to talk and communicate with others. But good communication cannot be called a good one without listening. For most people, listening is just a way of hearing things and thoughts that are spoken out by the person you are talking to. But no, listening is so much more than that.
According to Ferrari B. (2012), good listening is the key to developing fresh insights and ideas that fuel success. With that said, listening has good impacts on us that will benefit not only the listener but also the speaker.
In a working setup, the employee needs to listen to the demands of the boss in order to come up with solutions and ways to meet the demand. Through listening, he can already brainstorm how to solve the problems presented to him and he can further expand those solutions as the conversation goes by.
Listening as well does not give us a benefit in developing ideas but it can also help us develop empathy. Some people experience tragedies and a lot of misfortunes and we do not need to be in the same shoes to understand them. It just needs a pair of ears to learn with their experience. Listening to them serves as a good experience and a teacher for us to be empathetic from what they have experienced.
Almost everything can be resolved through listening. Many arguments end up in a bad situation because the persons arguing tend to both talk and hear what they’re both saying but they do not actually listen to each other. What’s important to take note of when communicating is that it is a one-way process. It is to give and take. You let the other person talk and your job is to listen. When they’re done, it is your turn. It is simple as that but listening’s simplicity can lead you to a lot of beneficial and impactful developments and progresses.
