The 7 Powers of Listening
Listening is harder than talking.
What would happen inside people if you were more excited to listen than speak?
Ears expand influence.
7 Powers of Listening
- Trust. People who feel heard extend trust.
- Engagement. Before you complain about engagement, evaluate your listening.
- Energy. Think of a time when a leader really listened to you. I bet you were energized.
- Boldness. People who feel they matter act with boldness.
- Connection. Listening gives birth to relationship.
- Ownership. People who don’t feel heard resist. We own what we help shape.
- Respect. Listening communicates value.
The more you need to do, the more you need to listen.
4 Listening Tips
- Plan to listen more than talk.
- Fall in love with the voices on your team, not your own.
- Relax while others talk.
- Spend energy planning your listening. What do you need to explore? Understand?
If you don’t have time to listen, you don’t have time to lead.
Listen for What Isn’t Said
“The most important thing in communication is to hear, what isn’t being said.” Peter Drucker
- Remember recurring themes.
- Watch behaviors. Believe actions over words.
- Notice emotions.
- Investigate intent. Ask, “What’s driving this?”
- Monitor energy. Ask about shifts in energy.
The secret to expanding your influence is in your ears.
Which listening tip do you need to practice today?
I Thought I Knew How to Listen—Then I Learned Radical Listening – Leadership Freak
4 Listening Skills Leaders Need to Master HBR
Thanks, Dan, for highlighting the power of listening. Despite knowing the consequences of not listening actively, many of us do not practice the art and pay the price.
Thanks for jumping in, SUBRAMANIAN. Like many leadership skills, we know listening is important in our heads. It’s the practice of listening that takes so much energy.
I find if I show up eager to learn, listening is easier. But sometimes I’m not eager to learn.
I like this one–Spend energy planning your listening. What do you need to explore? Understand?
Start by writing down the question you will ask and then listen.
And don’t forget the importance of eye contact.
Thanks Paul. Spontaneous responses are good. But my spontaneous response is talking. Writing down a few questions tells people you’re serious.
“If you don’t have time to listen, You don’t have time to lead.“ That is pure brilliance.
Thank you, John. I’m energized by your encouragement.
I like the Brian Regnier (Landmark Worldwide) insight… that listening allows for the speaking. No listening, no (real) speaking. Even, that the listening creates the speaking. Fun to play with, and try out…!