Being a thoughtful listener, asking questions, seeking clarification, and encouraging others to share their perspective and will reinforce your role as a spouse, friend, colleague, coach, and mentor.īeing a strong, attentive listener who can provide effective feedback will also enable you to coach your people more effectively.
#Active listening how to
The Purpose & Benefits of Active Listeningīefore we dive into specific active listening techniques and how to improve your active listening skills, it’s important to take a step back and understand why they matter.įirst, when a leader engages in active listening, it helps establish trust between both parties, shows empathy for others, and fosters psychological safety. At the organizational level, this is how to build a workplace culture of truth and courage. Unlike critical listening, an active listener is not trying to evaluate the message and offer their own opinion, but rather, to simply make the speaker feel heard and validated.Īt CCL, we help leaders go beyond basic active listening skills so that they’re better equipped to truly listen to understand others - including the facts, feelings, and values that may be hidden behind the words actually being shared. The trick is to be an attentive listener and have your toolkit of active listening techniques at the ready for whenever such moments occur. Yet while time for formal coaching sessions may be limited, you can fit in coaching moments and coaching conversations. Daily pressures and demands often overtake our work, leaving limited time and energy to focus on slowing down to really listen to, and coach, direct reports. While important, active listening and reflecting, responding, and giving feedback aren’t always easy.
If you want to try growing your active listening skillset and you’re ready to take the active listening challenge, read on! Using Active Listening to Coach Others Takes Intentional Effort
The listener may use active listening techniques like paying close attention to the speaker’s behavior and body language in order to gain a better understanding of their message - and may signal that they’re following along with visual cues such as nodding, eye contact, or avoiding potential interruptions, like fidgeting and pacing. This keeps both listener and speaker actively engaged in the conversation. What Is Active Listening? How Can I Do It Better? What Is Active Listening?Īctive listening requires you to listen attentively to a speaker, understand what they’re saying, respond and reflect on what’s being said, and retain the information for later.