Listening Chapter 3

Self-Assessment- Your Listening Style pg. 67

Outcomes: You will learn… how listening contributes to your career success. how false assumptions about listening hurt your success. barriers to listening. your listening style. six guidelines for effective listening. the best approaches based on the listening situation.

A few things to remember and know… Listening failures happen all the time in business Listening failures can be costly You spend more time listening than other communicative activities Listening is a habit of highly effective people Listening tends to be the most important skill- job & career success, productivity, upward mobility, and organizational effectiveness Listening is ranked #1 in managerial skills

Assumptions about Listening Effective Communication is the Sender’s Responsibility Listening is Passive Talking has More Advantages Listening is a Natural Ability

Research Misunderstanding are more common than not Conversational partners typically achieve 25-50% accuracy in interpreting the message After a 10 minute presentation, a normal listener recalls only half the information After 48 hours, the recall level drops to 25% Listeners process information at 500 words per minute but most people talk at around 125 words per minute

What are the reasons/ barriers that make you a poor listener?

Barriers to Effective Listening Environmental Move to a quieter location Eliminate distractions and annoyances Physiological Treat hearing problems Focus on the message with mental spare time Psychological Preoccupation Message Overload Egocentrism >Shut Up and Listen (Ted.com) Ethnocentrism Fear of Appearing Ignorant

Listening Style Relational Listening- emotional connection with others Aware of their own emotions Nonjudgmental (focus on understanding and support) Strengths: more satisfaction in life and relationships Drawbacks: Can easily internalize or adopt others feelings and emotions, may not always access information accurately, perception of being overly expressive or intrusive

Listening Style Analytical Listening- attend to the whole message before judging Detail oriented Varied perspectives Enjoy complex information Systematic thought process Strengths: measuring quality of ideas, using a wide range of perspectives, dealing with complicated issues Drawbacks: time consuming process

Listening Style Task-Oriented Listening- concerned with efficiency Expect speaker to get point across quickly Expect speaker to stay on topic Strengths: work well in fast-paced environments Drawbacks: impatient, not empathetic, tendency toward verbal aggression, little thoughtful deliberation

Listening Style Critical Listening- focus on evaluating (accuracy and consistency) Strengths: very good at investigative listening, listening for a problem Drawbacks: can frustrate others with their specific listening techniques and critique

Listening More Effectively Mindless (reacting automatically or routinely) vs. mindful (giving careful and thoughtful attention and responses) Listening to Understand? Withhold judgement Talk and Interrupt Less Ask Questions Paraphrase Attend to Nonverbal Cues Take Notes Listening to Evaluate? Analyze the Speaker’s Evidence Examine Emotional Appeals