Ten Ways to Improve Your Listening Skills | A Communication Training Article

Main Article Categories

"Communication Training" Article
Article Directory Home

Ten Ways to Improve Your Listening Skills By Expert Author: Susie Cortright
View Summary \| Submitted: 2006-04-15 \| Word Count: 429 words \| Views: 173 view(s)

Active listening is really an extension of the Golden Rule. To know how to listen to someone else, think about how you would want to be listened to. While the ideas are largely intuitive, it might take some practice to develop (or re-develop) the skills. Here's what good listeners know - and you should, too:

1. Face the speaker. Sit up straight or lean forward slightly to show your attentiveness through body language.

2. Maintain eye contact, to the degree that you and the speaker remain comfortable.

3. Minimize external distractions. Turn off the TV. Put down your book or magazine, and ask the speaker and other listeners to do the same.

4. Respond appropriately to show that you understand. Murmur ("uh-huh" and "um-hmm") and nod. Raise your eyebrows. Say words such as "Really," "Interesting," as well as more direct prompts: "What did you do then?" and "What did she say?"

5. Focus solely on what the speaker is saying. Try not to think about what you are going to say next. The conversation will follow a logical flow after the speaker makes her point.

6. Minimize internal distractions. If your own thoughts keep horning in, simply let them go and continuously re-focus your attention on the speaker, much as you would during meditation.

7. Keep an open mind. Wait until the speaker is finished before deciding that you disagree. Try not to make assumptions about what the speaker is thinking.

8. Avoid letting the speaker know how you handled a similar situation. Unless she specifically asks for advice, assume she just needs to talk it out.

9. Even if the speaker is launching a complaint against you, wait until she finishes to defend yourself. The speaker will feel as though her point had been made. She won't feel the need to repeat it, and you'll know the whole argument before you respond. Research shows that, on average, we can hear four times faster than we can talk, so we have the ability to sort ideas as they come in...and be ready for more.

10. Engage yourself. Ask questions for clarification, but, once again, wait until the speaker has finished. That way, you won't interrupt her train of thought. After you ask questions, paraphrase her point to make sure you didn't misunderstand. Start with: "So you're saying..." As you work on improving your listening skills, you may feel a bit panicky when there is a natural pause in the conversation. What should you say next? Learn to settle into the silence and use it to better understand all points of view.

About the Author/Author Bio

Susie Cortright is the founder of Momscape.com and Momscape's Online Organic and Natural Living Magazine. She is also the creator of Free-Article-Bank.com, featuring free, quality articles for your website, ezine, newsletter, or blog.

Article Source: http://www.articlesphere.com/Article/Ten-Ways-to-Improve-Your-Listening-Skills/21163

Article Tags: self improvement, communication training, active listening, improve your listening skills, listening, listening skills

This article has been viewed 173 time(s).

More "Communication Training" Related Articles

Listed below are more articles related to the above article from the "Communication Training" article category.

People interested in the above article "Ten Ways to Improve Your Listening Skills" are also interested in the related articles listed below:

Mind Control Stories and Techniques: Using Mind Control To Persuade People To Accept Your Ideas

You might think that mind control stories belong to the same category as fairy tales. However, these stories are not just for amusement purposes only. These stories are very real and can be applied to your everyday life. Take my case for example. I have long been practicing mind control techniques and have published quite a number of articles on the subject.

How To Detect Deception: Reliable Tools to Detect Deception and Lies

Many people believe that they know how to detect deception. They rely on nonverbal cues or actions that oftentimes speak louder than words. Indeed, there are body language signals that can help detect if a person is telling the real story or not. It is often believed that you can tell if the person is honest or not by looking at his eyes. If he looks straight in the eye, he is presumed honest. However, there have been instances where nonverbal cues alone have failed to detect deception.

Deception Detection Techniques: How To Spot Lies With Deception Detection Techniques

We have different ways of communicating with people—the verbal and the non-verbal. Unfortunately, we have already learned how to get around the traps of verbal communication. Some of us have even mastered the art of telling lies. However, controlling our non-verbal actions are a little bit harder to manipulate. This is where deception detection techniques come in.

Mind Control Techniques – How to Use the Semi-Silent Treatment

Mind control techniques are the new weapons of communication and persuasion in the world today. These strategies will help you cinch that business deal you've been negotiating with your client for the past few weeks. They will help you win people over to your side. Best of all, they will require nothing but the use of your own faculties. All that is left to do before you reach success with these mind control techniques is to learn how to use your natural abilities properly.

Persuasion Techniques: How Kids Use Persuasion to Get What They Want

Think back to your own childhood days and try to remember if you’ve used any of the following persuasion techniques. You might be more persuasive than you think. Think back to your own childhood days and try to remember if any of the following seems familiar. You might have used them at one point or another.

Persuasion Techniques: How to Use Persuasion Techniques In A New Working Environment

The best persuasion techniques are usually the simplest. These influence tactics won't require you to get your hands dirty; they won't even force you to do a lot of research. But if you're new in the field of psychology and influence, you're probably wondering how and where in the world you can use these persuasion techniques. What effect do they have in your life?

Psychology Of Lying: 3 Bizarre Reasons Why People Lie

In order for an individual to detect that a person is telling a lie, the person needs to understand the psychology of lying to know the reason behind the act. Having knowledge on the psychology of lying can help you become more observant to the different signs of lying, as well as the mentality that comes with it. This article reveals 3 bizarre reasons why people lie.

Print Article

Comment on Article

Favorite Article

Email to Friend

Republish Article

Article Directory Home

Self Improvement

Communication Training

Can't find what you're looking for? Try Google Search!

(Search in 23 languages: English, Spanish, Japanese, Arabic, Italian, German,
Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional, Dutch, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Greek,
Swedish, Romanian, Polish, Norwegian, Finnish, Danish, Czech, Croatian, Bulgarian)

(We serve worldwide - Locations updated as at Tuesday, 07 October 2008 11:22 am , Singapore)

United States of America, USA . United Kingdom, UK (England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland) . Canada . Afghanistan . Albania . Algeria . American Samoa . Andorra . Angola . Anguilla . Antarctica . Antigua & Barbuda . Argentina . Armenia . Aruba . Australia . Austria . Azerbaijan . Bahamas . Bahrain . Bangladesh . Barbados . Belarus . Belgium . Belize . Benin . Bermuda . Bhutan . Bolivia . Bonaire . Bosnia-Herzegovina . Botswana . Brazil . British Virgin Islands . Brunei Darrusalam . Bulgaria . Burkina Faso . Burundi . Cambodia . Cameroon . Cape Verde . Cayman Islands . Central African Republic . Chad . Channel Islands . Chile . China . Christmas Island . Colombia . Comoros . Congo . Congo (Dem. Rep.) . Cook Islands . Costa Rica . Côte d'Ivoire . Croatia . Cuba . Curacao . Cyprus . Czech Republic . Denmark . Djibouti . Dominica . Dominican Republic . East Timor . Ecuador . Egypt . El Salvador . Equatorial Guinea . Eritrea . Estonia . Ethiopia . Falkland Islands and Dependencies . Faroe Islands . Fiji . Finland . France . French Guiana . French Polynesia . Gabon . Gambia . Gaza . Georgia . Germany . Ghana . Gibraltar . Greece . Greenland . Grenada . Guadeloupe . Guam . Guatemala . Guinea . Guinea-Bissau . Guyana . Haiti . Hawaiian Islands . Honduras . Hong Kong . Hungary . Iceland . India . Indonesia . Iran . Iraq . Isle Of Man . Israel . Italy . Ivory Coast . Jamaica . Japan . Johnston Atoll . Jordan . Kazakhstan . Kenya . Kiribati . Korea (North) . Korea (South) . Kuwait . Kyrgyzstan . Laos . Latvia . Lebanon . Leeward Islands . Lesotho . Liberia . Libya . Liechtenstein . Lithuania . Luxembourg . Macau . Macedonia . Madagascar . Malawi . Malaysia . Maldives . Mali . Malta . Marshall Islands . Martinique . Mauritania . Mauritius . Mexico . Micronesia (Federated States) . Midway Islands . Moldova . Monaco . Mongolia . Montserrat . Morocco . Mosquito Coast . Mozambique . Myanmar (Burma) . Namibia . Nauru . Navassa Island . Nepal . Netherlands . Netherlands Antilles . New Caledonia . New Zealand . Nicaragua . Niger . Nigeria . Niue . Norfolk Island . Northern Mariana Islands . Norway . Oman . Pakistan . Palau . Palestine . Panama . Papua New Guinea . Paracel Islands . Paraguay . Peru . Philippines . Pitcairn Islands . Poland . Portugal . Puerto Rico . Qatar . Reunion . Romania . Russia . Rwanda . Ryukyu Islands . Saint Helena . Saint Kitts and Nevis . Saint Lucia . Saint Pierre & Miquelon . Saint Vincent & The Grenadines . Samoa . San Marino . São Tom?& Príncipe . Saudi Arabia . Senegal . Serbia . Seychelles . Sierra Leone . Singapore . Slovakia . Slovenia . Solomon Islands . Somalia . South Africa . Spain . Sri Lanka . Sudan . Suriname . Swaziland . Sweden . Switzerland . Syria . Taiwan . Tajikistan . Tanzania . Thailand . Togo . Tonga . Transkei . Trinidad & Tobago . Tunisia . Turkey . Turkmenistan . Turks and Caicos Islands . Tuvalu . US Virgin Islands . Uganda . Ukraine . United Arab Emirates . Upper Volta . Uruguay . Uzbekistan . Vanuatu . Vatican City (Holy See) . Venezuela . Vietnam . Wake Island . Windward Islands . Yemen . Yugoslavia . Zaire . Zambia . Zimbabwe

Copyright © 2005 - by Larry Lim, Singapore - Article Search Engine Directory at ArticleSphere.com™
All Rights Reserved Worldwide. All Trademarks and Servicemarks are the property of the respective owners.

Template Design by Internet Marketing Singapore | Internet Marketing