Listening Skills

Asian School of Business Management

Prof.Ashish Mohanty
amohanty_7@rediffmail.com

Introduction
Nature gave person two ears but only one tongue, which is a gentle hint that they should listen more than they talk.
Listening requires two ears, one for meaning and one for feeling.

Introduction

Robert Frost says: Half the world is composed of people who have something to say and cant, and the other half who have nothing to say and keep on saying it.

Listening Cycle
The cycle of listening comprises of two stages:
a) Encoding and transmission of the message by the sender. b) Decoding and providing the required feedback by the receiver.

What does listening means?

L- Look
I- Identify

S- Set- up
T- Tune in

E- Examine
N- Note taking

Hearing
Receiving carefully, without much attention and concentration, through one ear and letting it out through the other ear, as is commonly expressed.

Listening Efficiency or Listening Effectiveness

receiving the entire message in totality but may not be able to decode it with the same understanding as it was to be understood.
Listening Efficiency: Listening Effectiveness: receiving the entire message, decoding it properly, and then understanding the purpose of it in the right perspective.

Listening Statistics
In 7 out of every 10 minutes we are in communication with another human. In a typical business day, we spend 45% of our time listening, 30% of our time talking, 16% reading and 9% writing. Humans generally comprehension rate. listen at a 25%

Listening Statistics
Less than 2% of all professionals have had formal education or learning to understand and improve listening skills and techniques.

85% of what we know we have learned through listening.

US Department of Labor statistics reveal that 46% of those who quit their jobs did so because they felt they were not listened to and were therefore unappreciated.

Process of Listening
The Sensing/Selecting Stage The Interpreting Stage The Evaluating Stage (Receiving) (Attending) (Understanding)

The Responding Stage

The Memory Stage

(Responding)
(Remembering)

Oral Communication- The Speaking Part

The quality of speaking may be excellent, very good, good or poor depending on the skillful use of the four components: K- Kinesics (body language) P- Proxemics (inter-personal distance) S-Sonics (pronunciation and voice modulation) L- Linguistics (vocabulary or word power)

Oral Communication- The Listening Part

The listening part of oral communication depends on the following steps: E: Establishing and maintaining normal and free eye contact. A: Attending to the message most attentively without interruption. R: Responding to the message through an appropriate feedback EAR stands for listening part.

Why be a good listener?

Needs of the Customer

To be recognized and remembered To feel valued To feel appreciated To feel respected To feel understood To feel comfortable about a want or need

Types of Listening
Informative Listening Relationship Listening Appreciative Listening Critical Listening (Ethos, Logos & Pathos) Marginal Listening Passive Listening Active Listening

Bad Listening Habits

Criticizing the subject or the speaker Getting over-stimulated Listening only for facts Not taking notes OR outlining everything Creating distraction Letting emotional words block message

Barriers to Effective Listening

PSYCHOLOGICAL BARRIERS
Prejudgment/hasty evaluation

Closed- mindedness
Inability to pay attention

Ego involvement/Egocentrism

Barriers to Effective Listening

ENVIRONMENTAL DISTRACTIONS
Physical distractions Loud talking Visual barriers

Barriers to Effective Listening

EMOTIONAL/PERSONAL BARRIERS

Sad memories Fear Anxiety

Barriers to Effective Listening

LINGUISTIC/SEMANTIC BARRIERS Speakers style of speaking and mannerisms Difficult words and use of jargon

Lag time .

Barriers to Effective Listening

SOCIO- CULTURAL BARRIERS
Different cultural background Personal space and public space Sense of time

Barriers to Effective Listening

PHYSIOLOGICAL BARRIERS Hearing impairment or physical disability can affect listening. Hunger may not allow you to pay attention. Tiredness from overwork and exhaustion can prevent a listener from paying attention. Pain can prevent you from listening.

Overcoming Listening Barriers

Be a willing listener by controlling all barriers, and build a proactive interest to think or act congenially for better understanding. Disciplining yourself as a listener controlling all psychological barriers. by

Overcoming Listening Barriers

Carrying a notebook/a writing pad to take down brief notes/key points.
Practicing good body language, sitting correctly, establishing eye contact with the speaker.

How to increase listening efficiency?

C Concentrate (focus attention on what the speaker is saying) A
Acknowledge (your appreciative body language without faking

attention)

R
E

Research (practice self-talk to understand what the speaker is

saying)
Exercise control (exercise emotional control by restraining

impatience)

S Sense the non-verbal message S Structure (put the message is an order)

Conclusion
Remember
You not only listen with your ears You also listen with your eyes!!

If speaking is silver, then listening is goldTurkish proverb

Thanks for your time! And

YOUR thoughts experiences questions
amohanty_7@rediffmail.com 8895730989