“Listening is an art that requires attention over talent, spirit over ego, others over self. “

From the University of Missouri, 45% of communication is listening, and yet the average person

remembers only half to a quarter of the information they hear.

Do you listen to respond when someone is talking to you? Do you actually hear and digest what is being

said to you? Are you in the present moment and fully engaged or just wishing that the conversation

would be over and you can just jump in with a response?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions or said I don’t know, then you are not actively

listening. Actively listening is one of those things that people say that they do because they feel like that

makes them look and sound like a better person.

Active listening takes effort and that is something people lack now-a-days. So many of us have a hard

time to mentally multitask, we lack the capacity when it comes to listening. We need to slow down. Slow

down in life, slow down in our day to day, slow down in our mind and slow down in our encounters with

others.

Conversations are being rushed they and often lack mindfulness. There are several other key factors

when it comes to actively listening. Practicing active listening with these techniques:

Pay attention-providing your undivided attention with open-mindedness.

Withhold judgment- withhold judement and any unwanted opinions.

Reflect- be attuned to and reflect feelings.

Clarify- if something is unclear or need a better understanding.

Summarize- recap what information you took in.

Share- share any feedback and provide verbal affirmations.

Observe- when verbal and non verbal messages are being sent.

Be comfortable with slience- allow for that safe space to be present.

Don’t interrupt- this is the big ticket here. Don’t interrupt and disclose similar situations.

Make a conscious effort to hear and understand what is being relayed to you, rather than giving

someone a fraction if not less of your attention. If we all could give a little more effort into being

present and actively listening, we are helping others who are trying to reach out. We may not see it in

just a simple conversation, but to someone else you are allowing them to express themselves and

freeing whatever is on their minds. We need a little more compassion and empathy in this world and it

could start with YOU reading this today. Allow yourself to open your mind only using your ears.