Sometimes all we need is to be listened to, to be heard without interrupting, to be heard without being judged or to be heard without jumping in with the answer. When we give a person our time to truly listen to them they walk away from the conservation with renewed hope, renewed energy and peace of mind that some people do really care.
We can get frustrated and upset when people don’t listen to us, and this can often lead to people becoming disinterested in what they are doing. The smiles leaves the face the output goes down and we as leaders scratch our heads wondering what the problem is. The problem normally is the face we see in the mirror before us, but will we be honest enough and aware enough to acknowledge this.
In my previous business I’ve been guilty of not giving my full attention to people and the main reason was work took over my life. Instead of fully listening, I was thinking of work but thankfully my listening skills are now one of my strengths. We have to turn or stumbling blocks into stepping stones to a better future, a better leader, and a better you.
Sometimes it’s the quitter ones we need to listen to, they often have answers we look for but many times are drowned out by the loud mouths and never get a chance to bring their brilliance to the table. The quiet ones can often say ‘I give up’ they just won’t listen. How much knowledge and wisdom is lost due to not giving a person a chance, a chance to let their voice be heard.
As the late Larry King said “I remind myself every morning: Nothing I say this day will teach me anything. So if I’m going to learn, I must do it by listening”. When we take a step back and look at ourselves and ask what do we need to improve on? I say make you’re listening skills a priority because some day a person will call you up to say ‘THANK YOU’ for listening and ‘THANK YOU’ for being there for me when everyone else walked on by.
We all at some stage on our journey cry out for help, we look for support and we crave for a person that will listen. The signs are there when a person is in trouble, don’t be the person to walk on by. Stop and listen!
