Read the following article: Rane, D. (2012). Good Listening Skills Make Efficient Business Sense.
Author D.B. Rane discusses Ten Commandments of Effective Listening. Identify one commandment and:
1- Expand on it by discussing how this particular commandment is essential for effective interpersonal communication to occur. You should reference and briefly discuss another source to support your opinion. This source can be our text/lectures and/or a third-party source such as a scholarly journal article or business article such as something from Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, or Harvard Business Review.
2- Offer an example of how one can implement this commandment in a specific workplace scenario to improve the communication process
.
3- Remember to use APA formatting for any in-text citations and for your references,\
Good Listening Skills Make Efficient Business Sense 43
Good Listening Skills Make Efficient Business Sense
D B Rane*
The ability to understand and give response effectively to verbal communication is known as listening. The effectiveness in listening necessarily depends on the interrelationships between the sender and the receiver of the message, which is found to be a vital skill more particularly for the managers in business organizations while obtaining need-based information to perform their jobs successfully. The quality of relationships with others and job effectiveness largely depend on the listening ability of the individual concerned. Lack of listening ability at all the levels in the organizations lead to work-related problems. To become a good listener, one needs to practice and acquire special skills so that the vital information sent by the speaker is well received by the active listener. A lot of concentration and firm determination is required to become an active listener. Thus listening, among others, is one of the most essential skills one should have. Many people have bad listening habits and hence need to put a lot of effort to break these habits to become effective at work. This reveals that improvement in workplace productivity is possible by developing active listening and better communication at all the levels. This paper explains the process of listening, significance of active listening in business communication, concept of effective listening, and barriers to good listening, and gives vital tips to become a good listener.
Introduction
It is well known that communication is a two-way process. It is a process that involves at least two parties, viz., the sender and the receiver, or the speaker and the listener.
The purpose of communication is achieved only when the receiver receives the message sent by the sender fully and clearly. It is observed that expressing our wants, feelings, thoughts and opinions through interpersonal communication consists only half part of the process, whereas listening and understanding others constitute the rest of the communication process. There is often an expectation that the receiver not only receives the message, but also understands, interprets, uses and provides the requisite feedback about the message and finally acts on it. It is essential to note that the roles of sender and receiver are not always fixed. This means, the sender may become the receiver and the receiver may become the sender depending on the circumstances.
Good communication, therefore, calls for active listening skills. A good speaker must necessarily be a good listener. Nature blessed us with two ears but only one tongue, which is a gentle hint that we should listen more and talk less! To listen actively to another human being may be the greatest gift one can have. For a long time, people assumed that listening was a natural trait, but in fact, not all are good listeners. Listening is a skill that must be cultivated and developed further. Many people take it for granted that they are good listeners forgetting that there is a difference between hearing and listening or even active listening. Hearing is a physical and passive activity, whereas listening is necessarily a mental activity and hence it is active in nature. Thus, listening consists of careful hearing with active application of mind. Hearing involves mere reception of sound signals, but listening requires the use of ears, brain, and eyes to understand non-verbal clues, with additional insights like perception, attitudes, participation, etc. There are, however, some barriers to active listening which cause hindrance to the normal functioning at the workplace affecting the business of the organization adversely. The importance of active listening in the organization needs no emphasis. Based on the experience of various organizations and day-to-day behavior of human beings in the society, suitable tips could be given to become good listener for personal as well as organizational growth. It is observed that business thrives on listening. The complaints of the customers are redressed satisfactorily if they are actively listened and can also contribute to knowledge acquisition regarding the problems faced. The training programs for service providers thus should be focused on behavioral skills, attitudinal changes and various communication skills which include listening.
Significance of Good Listening Skills in Business Development
It has been proved by many researchers that the success of a business essentially depends on promotion of good listening skills at all the levels in the organization. The importance of good listening skills in the development of a business organization is summarized below:
Effective listening improves the ability to process the information by the manager and helps him to make better policies, take correct decisions, solve the problems and grievances, know about various activities of his organization and understand the policies of other competing organizations.
On an average, managers spend 50% of their communication time in listening. They carefully listen to the messages to feel the pulse of the employees, to understand their mood and reactions to the policies of the management and to find out if there is any false rumor which may harm the prospects of the organization. Listening provides suitable atmosphere to the employees to express themselves.
Effective listening is extremely important to encourage the speaker, and to promote understanding and coordination among various departments of the organization.
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Lack of good listening skills can create embarrassing situations which lead to misunderstanding and lack of coordination. If the suggestions and proposals of the employees are not listened to by the managers, it provokes bitterness, annoyance and misunderstanding among the employees.
Effective listening is very essential for the success of open-door policy. A manager, who listens to the employees, gives them an opportunity to express their suppressed emotions.
Effective listening invariably contributes towards receiving constructive suggestions from the employees. There can be better harmony and cohesion in the organization if the management and employees effectively listen to each other. It can raise the morale of the employees, and the raised morale can bind them together.
Employees can introduce new schemes and give useful suggestions to the manager if he allows their participation in the decision-making process and listens carefully to what they say.
Productivity of the workers is enhanced due to their good listening skills. The workers understand their assignments in a better way. A congenial and cohesive rapport is built up with colleagues, superiors and customers, ultimately resolving the work-related problems amicably through discussion. It creates team-based environment, encourages exchange of thoughts and promotes better understanding among the groups.
Business thrives on listening. In order to have purposeful communication within the organization, people need to discuss with all the stakeholders attentively. People within the progressive organizations are encouraged by the management to learn and adopt active listening skills.
Knowledge upgradation is essential in the present global economic scenario and good listening skills contribute significantly to enhance knowledge on a continuous basis. Today’s worker is being described as the ‘knowledge worker’. People have to constantly upgrade their skills and knowledge in their business or profession since we have entered an information era, and the modern-day organizations are described as information processing units. There is so much to be shared with the clients and other interested parties for mutual benefits. This is achieved not only by reading but also through active listening.
Customers’ complaints, more particularly in service industry like banking and financial services, may be resolved easily if the executives possess good listening skills. People at the counters, salesforce and customer support executives understand customers better. Good listening skills have proved to be an important tool for redressing customer complaints and employee grievances. This is, however, possible only when people learn to listen.
Good Listening Skills Make Efficient Business Sense 45
The Concept of Listening
The process of listening consists of five interrelated and synchronized activities: receiving, interpreting, remembering, evaluating and responding.
Receiving: Physically hearing the message and taking note of it is called receiving. Noise and lack of attention adversely affect the physical reception of the message.
Interpreting: Interpreting refers to assigning meaning to the message received which depends on the values, beliefs, ideas, expectations, roles, needs, and personal history of the individual who receives the message. The point to note here is that the interpreted meaning may differ from that of the intention of the speaker.
Remembering: Storing a message for future reference is ‘remembering’. It is easier to retain what one hears by taking notes or making a mental outline of the speaker’s key points.
Evaluating: It is a process of forming an opinion about the message by applying critical thinking to weigh the speaker’s remarks.
Responding: This is the last activity in the process of listening wherein the receiver evaluates and reacts to the speaker’s message in some suitable fashion thereby acknowledging the message received.
Types of Listening
All listening is not of the same intensity. Good listening is that which passes all the five activities mentioned above with positive results. Depending on the effectiveness of listening, it can be classified into three types as under:
Passive Listening: It refers to indifferent listening wherein there is no conscious effort to receive and absorb the message. The process of communication is hampered sometimes due to fatigue, ill health, disregard for the speaker or lack of interest; the listener, though physically present, does not participate actively. It also occurs when the speaker fails to match the wavelength of the receiver. Passive listening leads to misunderstanding as the communicator would be under the impression that the receiver has fully grasped the message as intended.
Selective Listening: In this type, people listen to only that which they want to listen to without focusing their attention on the entire message. The message is not thoroughly processed because the receiver is not in a position to concentrate or considers the speaker has not conveyed the information required on the subject and even feels he is better informed than the communicator.
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Active Listening: Active listening is the most desirable type of listening in which the listener makes conscious efforts to grasp the message attentively through a participative process and shows regard for the speaker. The receiver of the message concentrates on what is being conveyed, motivates and prompts the speaker and makes it easy for him to meaningfully deliver the message. Thus during active listening, not only the receiver understands the message, but is also in a position to remember and recall the same as and when required.
Barriers to Good Listening Skills
It is essential to know the obstacles which prevent good listening. Some of the barriers have to do with the speaker, some with environment, but the most important ones are those concerning the listener.
Physical Barriers: Physical barriers include low audibility level, irrelevant noises and sounds, malfunctioning of microphone and other mechanical devices, and frequent interruptions. Some of such common barriers are:
The microphone or loud speaker may be unclear.
There are some voices and noises that dilute the sound levels of the speaker.
The speaker speaks very close to the microphone or keeps too much distance.
There are frequent interruptions due to conversations going on nearby, thinking about domestic problems, etc.
Transmission failures.
It can be the noisy fans, glaring lights, background music, overheated or cold rooms.
People-Related Barriers: These barriers can be both physiological and psychological. Physiological barriers arise when the listener suffers from ill health, fatigue, sleeplessness, hearing problems and the like, which come in the way of good listening. It may also arise due to the tone of voice and pronunciation of the speaker.
Psychological barriers cover the value system and behavioral aspects. They may also be on account of hierarchical differences. They may relate to the bias against the speaker, lack of credibility about the source of communication, underestimation of the speaker and the speaker’s ability, etc. Some common examples where listening fails to be effective on account of people-related factors are:
The speaker speaks in a harsh voice that does not reach the receiver.
The speaker speaks very rapidly or the tone or voice is not clear.
Good Listening Skills Make Efficient Business Sense 47
The receiver of the message does not consider the speaker to be well- informed.
The receiver lets the mind roam rather than stay focused on the message.
The listener perceives the speaker to be lacking in depth or not having adequate authority.
Worry, fear, anger, grief and depression also affect good listening.
The receiver starts advising without listening to the content of the message.
Sometimes the main focus is on finding things to disagree with. People listen to find out faults.
Lack of motivation among receivers due to unrelated subject, ineffective speech, and lack of faith and confidence adversely affect good listening.
Effective listening is not possible if the delivery is monotonous. It can put listeners to sleep or cause them to lose interest.
People commonly take notes while listening, which, in turn, reduces their listening capacity. A good listener listens carefully and writes down only the key points or leading ideas.
Some listeners concentrate and pick out only those aspects which interest them and reject other things.
People who are very sensitive take everything as a personal attack, which is known as listening defensively and acts as a barrier to effective listening.
Some listeners are close-minded. They are not open to new ideas, and it proves as a barrier to effective listening.
It may be easy to correct physical barriers by proper and timely maintenance of mechanical devices that aid the speaker. However, people-related barriers explained above are hard to change since they relate to physiological and psychological factors of human beings acquired over years. Need-based training programs and counseling to enhance listening skills of the workmen may help to achieve success. It will, however, take a long time to reduce human-related barriers due to their multiplicity and complexity.
Vital Tips for Good Listening Skills
It is observed that despite the existence of several barriers to successful listening, good listeners usually try to overcome these barriers tactfully. There are certain well-accepted essentials for good listening. Following are the ten commandments for effective listening as given by an anonymous source.
Stop Talking: One cannot simultaneously talk and listen. The speaker cannot speak and put the message across if the listener continues
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to talk. Therefore, the first commandment is that the listener should stop talking and start listening.
Put the Speaker at Ease: The speaker can effectively organize his thoughts and convey them meaningfully only when he feels at ease. This could be done by the listeners through several positive signals like sitting down, avoiding talking, turning to the speaker, observing, etc.
Show Desire to Listen: This calls for positive attitude of the listener. The listener should indicate preparedness and attentiveness to listen to the message by suitable body movement, right posture or by keeping pen and pad ready. Instead of opposing the speaker every now and then while listening, it is certainly desirable to listen carefully to understand his message clearly.
Remove Distractions: Tune out external and internal obstacles to facing and maintaining contact with the speaker. The listener has to remove distractions by shutting the door, switching off the cell phone and avoiding distracting gestures like looking at the watch now and then, shuffling papers, playing with pen, pencil, etc. so that the body language of the speaker could also be observed while delivering the message which proves conducive to good listening process.
Empathize with the Speaker: This means that the listener should place himself in the shoes of the speaker and try to understand his viewpoint. The speaker may not be perfect and may have shortcomings. The listener should show proper understanding which is essential for effective listening. The listeners can create a congenial atmosphere that encourages others in the group to participate honestly and wholeheartedly by showing concern for the speaker.
Be Patient: A listener should not only be attentive but also tolerant. The speaker must be given time to have his say. One should wait for the speaker to complete his talk. The listener should refrain from making frequent interruptions, should avoid making insulting remarks, sarcastic comments and disturbing gestures. One should not walk away while the speaker is talking. Every speaker has a chain of thoughts about the subject, and gestures of impatience on the part of the listener may disturb the delivery of speech.
Hold Temper: Good listening also calls for the right temperament. Angry minds cannot communicate. The listener may not understand what the speaker is saying or may think that the speaker is incorrect. The listener may have a right for instant reaction but the listener should not become overstimulated or excited too fast by what the speaker is saying. Be sure that you have understood what the speaker is saying and hold your judgment till the message is completed.
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Refrain from Argumentation and Criticism: It often happens that the listener picks up an argument with the speaker and tries to challenge and criticize the speaker, which impedes the normal flow of the message. It must be remembered that the speaker and the listener have their respective roles to play, and the listener should not make any verbal attack on the speaker. This deprives the listener of the benefit of speaker’s message.
Ask Questions and Extract More: Positive interventions from listener are desirable. The listener should ask appropriate questions at the right opportunity to obtain more information. Many a time, the speaker provides for a question-and-answer session for facilitating greater understanding. During the session, it is usually observed that the active listener poses several questions to the speaker to clarify his doubts and seeks explanation until he is satisfied which helps him understand the subject matter clearly.
Avoid Talking: This is an essential aspect in the process of listening and hence it is repeated as the tenth commandment. In order for the speech to proceed smoothly, talking should be stopped not only at the beginning but also throughout the message delivery process. One must know when to refrain from talking. Avoiding talking is necessary to concentrate and understand the message clearly.
Eye Contact: This is an additional one to the above ten commandments. Eye contact is the most essential prerequisite for effective listening. When the individual does not look at the speaker, it means he or she is not interested in listening, showing withdrawal symptoms. The listener must maintain eye contact with the speaker and put non-verbal skills to work, as it encourages the speaker while delivering the message.
It is evident that these commandments help the speaker in coming out with the best and making the communication very effective. The speaker gets motivated and responds very enthusiastically to such appreciative listeners. Finally, it must be remembered that listening needs more emphasis than talking, and hence the above guidelines must be adhered to meticulously for ensuring effective listening.
Conclusion
A good speaker has to be a good listener. Good listening, therefore, needs hard work. Listening implies much more than hearing. While hearing is a physical act, listening is intellectual. Listening calls for a high degree of participation and involvement in the process of communication. Each one of the listening steps such as receiving, interpreting, remembering, evaluating and responding has to be followed properly for listening to become effective. Active listening is the most desirable type of listening and has to be consciously cultivated. The speaker and the listener should be conscious about the physical and psychological barriers and they should strive to remove them to achieve
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the benefits of good listening. The ten commandments of listening should be implemented earnestly to make listening and communication very effective. Listening skills are particularly important in business, especially in the services sector where business thrives on listening and communication. Progressive organizations lay more emphasis on developing good listening skills among people at various levels knowing fully well its significance for the development of business. Therefore, there is a growing need to develop recognized ‘listening organizations’ in the business sector.
Bibliography
Anjali Ghanekar (2007), Essentials of Business Communication Skills, pp. 168-173, Everest Publishing House, Pune.
Bovee C V et al. (2009), Business Communication Today, pp. 36-39, Pearson, New Delhi.
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