One thing I’ve learned, in over 20 years of listening for a living …
MOST PEOPLE DON’T EXPERIENCE FEELING HEARD!
❓ When did someone last really listen to you? (If it was customer service in telephone banking, sorting out the 3p you mistakenly got charged for going into your authorised overdraft for 25 minutes, then that doesn’t count!)
Y’know the intensity – eyes glued to your expression, full attention, not waiting to agree or chip in with their own similar story!
↪️ It’s World Listening Day. 👂
⛑️ We struggle with attention, now that the apps and algorithms have us chasing dopamine with new and shiny unrequested content – such as feta quiche recipes, after your phone overheard you asking a friend how to caramelise red onions.
🎯 Listening requires attention.
What I’ve learned (especially the days when I really wish the alarm didn’t wake me, even though I carefully tested all the sound options for the least offensive, and I'm not as alert) ...
… is that you never hear what YOU THINK you’re going to hear.
👟 And, if you DO you hear what you expected, then you’re probably not listening hard enough, full enough, long, quietly and slowly, ON-THEIR-SIDE, in-their-shoes enough.
🎾 It’s like a tennis pro at Wimbledon, against an opponent they’ve played countless times, thinking they know the spin or the shot they know them for.….
...Then, getting caught out and losing a point when they did something completely different.
❌ The difference is that, in not listening fully…
YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU MISSED!
But it was A CHANCE you won’t get again – maybe it was ...
⚡ Vital info that makes you look like a genius when you refer to it
⚡ Something that gets you excited and raring to go
⚡ A getting-to-know-you that you didn’t even know you needed
What do you think gets missed the most?
P.S. If you’re stuck in a scenario that’s causing you lack of sleep, super stress and sweaty palms, then cut having crap conversations and get a fresh grip by grabbing yourself a 30-minute intro chat for some fast tips for your specific situation - see the contact page to book.
“I can’t believe you can spot what I need so quickly and I can put things in action so simply!”