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Hello, my name is Bill Blake and today I would like to talk with you about something that
that we are all familiar with – Listening! We listen to hear! But more importantly, we
listen to communicate! And if we are to be as effective as we can,
we must hone our listening skills – just as we do with many of the other skills we
possess.
Has this ever happened to you? The message you thought you were sending was
not the message that was received. Or maybe you heard a message that was not what the
speaker intended!
In your organization, would more effective communication:
Improve employee morale? Or would it enhance relationships in your
workplace, or on your team? Would it improve communication, or boost performance?
Or would it improve relationships with your customers?
And if communication was improved, would it have an impact on your “bottom line” or
success ratio?
It is estimated that people screen out, or misunderstand the meaning in over 70% of Communication
Listening is more than hearing. Have you ever been in a situation where after speaking,
the person addressed simply shrugged their shoulders, or made a funny face. Did this
communicate something to you? You see, listening is also the ability to
receive, interpret, and respond to both verbal messages & body language
Some areas where Businesses are using the Personal Listening Profile, include:
To enhance communication in general To strengthen customer relations
To reduce conflict throughout the organization To improve the effectiveness of their managers
And as part of their leadership development programs
The Personal Listening Profile identifies 5 different approaches to listening:
The first is Appreciative listening where you simply relax & enjoy the listening experience
The second is Empathic: to support & understand the emotions of the speaker is experiencing
while speaking The third is the Discerning approach: here
you simply want to gather complete & accurate information
The fourth is the Comprehensive approach: Where you want to organize information and
understand the full meaning of the message The fifth and final approach is Evaluative,
where you want to critique the information supplied & make a decision
We can all use a variety of approaches based on the situation, but each of us will use
some approaches more than others The important thing is that our listening
style determines the quality of the information we gather, and the reaction of others to our
behavior So with this knowledge, and depending on our
motivation, we can adapt our listening approach to meet the needs of the situation we are
facing.
Once the Personal Listening Profile is completed, the actual report to the client, includes:
An identification of your preferred listening style
The report describes your strengths in listening, and possible growth areas of greater effectiveness
It describes your expectations of others as listeners
And it also includes a communication gap analysis indicating situations where you communicate
well & where you might improve
The Listening Profile Report also includes: A personalized Action Plan for the participant
A detailed overview of each of the 5 listening approaches
And a guide on how the listening approaches combine to create the 15 different listening
styles
In addition, a group report can be developed to show the predominant listening approach
of each team member In summary the Personal Listening Profile
can be a powerful tool to help people communicate more effectively, more often!
To develop your Listening skills will take plenty of practice,
But it will pay big dividends!
And so, thanks for watching our short video! And remember:
Only by listening effectively can you respond appropriately!
If you would like further information on our Personal Listening Profile, please visit our
website: www.ProfileProf.com Good luck with your listening skills!