Hearing vs.

Listening
“Was I paying
attention?”
 Hearing vs. Listening
• Do you think there is a difference between hearing and
listening?
• You are right, there is!
• Hearing is simply the act of perceiving sound by the
ear. If you are not hearing-impaired, hearing simply
happens.
• Listening, however, is something you consciously
choose to do. Listening requires concentration so that
your brain processes meaning from words and
sentences. Listening leads to learning.
Most people tend
to be "hard of
listening" rather
than "hard of
hearing."
 Listening

. . . is intermittent.
. . . is a learned skill.
. . . is active.
. . . implies using the message received.
The Process of Listening
 Obstacles to Effective Listening

• Physical distractions
• Physiological distractions
• Psychological distractions
• Factual distractions
• Semantic distractions
 Promoting Better Listening

• Desire to listen.
• Focus on the message.
• Listen for main ideas.
• Understand the
speaker’s point of view.
 Promoting Better Listening cont.

• Withhold judgment.
• Reinforce the message.
• Provide feedback.
• Listen with the body.
• Listen critically.
 Types of Listening
• Active vs. Passive
• Positive vs. Negative
What Kind is it?
–Appreciative
–Empathic
–Discriminative
–Analytical
 Listening Importance

• Most frequently used communication skill

– 50% of typical workday spent communicating
– of this 50%, 45% is spent listening
– 45% of business person’s salary earned listening

• Good listeners
– are perceived as more intelligent
– save time, energy, and other resources
– increase chances for advancement and success

• Interactive Listening
 What is Interactive Listening?

• Cultivated Skill involving the goal-oriented active,

positive process of receiving and attending to
aural stimuli

• Conscious elimination of perceptual barriers

How Important is Interactive Listening?

• Critical for occupational advancement

• Leads to perception of intelligence

• Saves time, money, and resources

Improving Your Listening Skills

• Identify Objectives
• Know Your Listening Habits
• Generate Motivation and Energy
• Eliminate Distractions
• Ask questions
– Closed
– Open
– Probing
• Evaluate Your Progress
 Effective Listening

• Effective listening requires an understanding that it is

not just the speaker's responsibility to make sure he/she
is understood.
• The listener has a major role to play in hearing the
complete message.
• The following ideas will assist the listener in
understanding the message.
Ten Commandments of Effective Listening
1.Stop talking!
2.Put the speaker at ease.
3.Pay attention to the nonverbal language of physical gestures,
facial expressions, tone of voice, and body posture.
4.Listen for what is not said.
5.Know exactly what the other person is saying.
6.Be aware of "tune out" words.
7.Concentrate on "hidden" emotional meanings.
8.Be patient.
9.Hold your temper!
10.Empathize with the speaker.
 8 Keys to Effective Listening
1. Find areas of interest.
2. Judge content, not delivery.
3. Hold your fire.
4. Listen for ideas.
5. Be a flexible note taker.
6. Resist distractions.
7. Keep your mind open.
8. Thought is faster than speech; use it.
 Conclusion
• "What is so important about listening? I listen!"
• Sure you do. But how? How adept are you, for example, in getting people to
come right out and really talk to you?
• Before you can get the most out of a listening situation, others must first
believe that you really want to listen. They must feel that when they tell you
something, it will be received by you in the proper spirit.
• Learn to listen beyond the words, with your heart as well as your ears.
• Observe the signs of the inner feelings such as voice quality, facial
expressions, body posture and motions, etc. These actions are revealing,
and sometimes may have an opposite meaning from the spoken word.
• A friend put it this way: "You listened as if you wanted to hear what I was
going to say, as if it was really important to you. And that makes me feel
good!"