Active Listening : An invaluable Skill

One of the topics much talked about during these corona days is skill requirements or new sills required to be employed, sills required to be able to continue working without losing job, skills required to remain resilient during uncertainties and skills to be acquired to survive in new world.

For each industry skill differs, infact skill sets differ, people with multi skills may survive, people who try to develop their skills may be considered, people who know their skill levels try hard, those who do not know what their skill is or what is required may vanish.

However, there are certain skills that are mandatorily required to be able to endure in career as well as in life, one of them is active listening. It is very common that people say listening skill is vital for any profession, not only for profession but also in life, maintaining relationships and to understand or empathize with others.

How is active listening skill different from listening skill?

In a day we hear lot of sounds, we take only what is required. But when we have the intention to learn we listen actively or we should listen actively. We observe actively, we keep note of things we listened or observed for future reference.

When it comes to work or life, we seldom listen to others. As a quote says, people listen to reply not to understand, we listen to others and prepare reply before they complete, so listening is distracted. Active listening is done to understand, comprehend and take what is required. Understanding occurs only when we prepare our mind or direct our mind to listen to others. Paraphrasing is the best way to ensure active listening by self.

Paraphrasing, Acknowledging and Responding helps to make listening an activity.

Paraphrasing is to be practiced and made a habit. It means summarizing the content that we listened. Type it ot write it in the form of points. Ink it to sync it. There must be a synchronization between the people who communicate with each other. One is speaking and the other is listening, listener must always give a feedback and it is always good to acknowledge when the listener is able to comprehend the message.

Active listening is an invaluable skill, it is being taught from the day a child begin schooling and even before that.

Later people will start making others listen to them and never give their ears to people who wish to speak to them.

This has to be understood and practiced, cannot be taught. This is one of the most important skill required for career and for a happy living.