Improve Listening Skills: 3 Simple
Tips To Listen Effectively For
Better Communication
Michael Lee
http://www.20daypersuasion.com/

There’s a big difference between
listening and hearing. Hearing is just
letting sound pass through your ears.
Listening, on the other hand, requires
you to understand what you are
hearing.

Unfortunately, people have grown
indifferent to conversations, letting
words slip by without really
understanding what they mean. I think
it’s time people start learning ways to
improve their listening skills again,
don’t you think?

Having good listening skills comes with
a lot of benefits. For one, it helps you
handle any situation with ease. You
might be surprised at what you can
deduce based on the words a person
uses.

And another, people appreciate it when
they see that you are really listening to
what they have to say. Here are some of
the ways to improve your listening
skills.

Tip # 1 To Improve Listening Skills: Stay
Focused.

Don’t let your mind wander when
another person is speaking to you.
Keep your eyes on the person talking to
prevent your concentration from
drifting off. Remember that every word
counts.

Even when the topic is boring, pretend
you’re interested. That way, you won’t
be easily distracted. I sometimes find
myself in situations wherein the
speaker is less than lively.

One particular example is of a
convention I went to a few years ago.
One of the speakers was an old man
who was talking about past successful
activities of a certain organization.

I normally don’t stick around during
such boring opening remarks, but I
needed to be there for an article I was
writing.

Instead of tuning him out, I told myself
that I was really interested in X
organization. That way, I was able to
focus all my energy into listening and
understanding what he was trying to
say.

Tip # 2 To Improve Listening Skills:
Don’t Interrupt.

Don’t interrupt a person especially when
he/she is still talking. Aside from being
rude, interrupting breaks the flow of
the whole conversation.

If you have a question, wait until that
person has finished talking. You never
know, but your answer might come up
in the next five minutes of the
conversation.

Besides, it’s easier to improve your
listening skills when you’re not
interrupting somebody every ten
seconds.

Tip # 3 To Improve Listening Skills:
Stop Stereotyping.

Don’t box a person into a stereotype.
Doing so will only distract you from
what he/she is saying. Your mind will
already have created an opinion about
the said person and that will greatly
affect your listening skills.

Not only will you be distracted from a
good part of the conversation, you will
also develop an unhealthy bias towards
the person or his/her message.

If you want to improve your listening
skills, always keep an open mind. If
you find it difficult not to cast
stereotypes, pretend that this is the first
time you’re hearing about it.

When it comes down to it, trying to
improve your listening skills is about
respect. It’s respect for the person who
is talking and respect for his/her actual
message.

It’s also about clear communication. You
can communicate much better if you
know how to listen effectively. I hope
these tips have helped you get a better
ear for words.

Presentation By:
Michael Lee
Persuasion Expert and Author
http://www.20daypersuasion.com/