Comments on: Listening – The Foundation of Communication http://wisdomalacarte.net/blog/listening-the-foundation-of-communication/2009/11/ Thu, 05 Jan 2012 05:54:53 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Kevin http://wisdomalacarte.net/blog/listening-the-foundation-of-communication/2009/11/comment-page-1/#comment-84 Kevin Fri, 04 Dec 2009 08:22:20 +0000 http://wisdomalacarte.net/blog/?p=1279#comment-84 Hi Diane I have been in the selling business for almost my entire working life and I cannot agree more with your principle! As an evolutionary process, I discovered, almost by default, and in particular, that listening was the way to achieve what I really wanted to happen and that if I didn't listen, I could have found myself in some serious situations. This based on the nature of the business where if legal precepts were not adhered to, I could have found myself on the wrong side of litigation! So it became an imperative to the job that I acquire seriously good listening skills and seriously quickly! The fear of not having listened properly could have put me into court so I had to learn to listen - and listen properly! It wasn't difficult for me, though, as I used to get good marks in school all those years ago for Comprehension - the understanding of what has been written. But I also learned that there was something else behind the listening and I feel it is a skill that needs/should be taught along with the convention of listening. It is the art/ skill of being able to ASK THE RIGHT QUESTIONS IN ORDER TO RECEIVE THE RIGHT ANSWERS!! And they may not necessarily be the right answers for you, but they are the right answers for the person you are listening to, for it is their answer. The wisdom comes in understanding what you have heard and being able to apply it to their situation. In sales I think that this is an important attribute - the ability to be able to ask questions to get the answers and keep on asking questions, narrowing down until you get to hear the truth behind the answers. People are so afraid to answer, to give their "Truth" for fear of exposing themselves and leaving themselves in a compromising position or a position where they are uncomfortable - out of their "comfort zone," that I feel it is necessary, in order to get to the truth, that you ask questions, making them feel comfortable in the asking and getting the answers that you need. Gosh! It sounds like I am a past master of interrogation, but no! It is simply the addition of a skill in order to make one listen better, to make understanding better, to make communication better! Well done for a great article! Kind regards Kevin Hi Diane

I have been in the selling business for almost my entire working life and I cannot agree more with your principle!
As an evolutionary process, I discovered, almost by default, and in particular, that listening was the way to achieve what I really wanted to happen and that if I didn’t listen, I could have found myself in some serious situations. This based on the nature of the business where if legal precepts were not adhered to, I could have found myself on the wrong side of litigation! So it became an imperative to the job that I acquire seriously good listening skills and seriously quickly! The fear of not having listened properly could have put me into court so I had to learn to listen – and listen properly! It wasn’t difficult for me, though, as I used to get good marks in school all those years ago for Comprehension – the understanding of what has been written.

But I also learned that there was something else behind the listening and I feel it is a skill that needs/should be taught along with the convention of listening. It is the art/ skill of being able to ASK THE RIGHT QUESTIONS IN ORDER TO RECEIVE THE RIGHT ANSWERS!!
And they may not necessarily be the right answers for you, but they are the right answers for the person you are listening to, for it is their answer. The wisdom comes in understanding what you have heard and being able to apply it to their situation. In sales I think that this is an important attribute – the ability to be able to ask questions to get the answers and keep on asking questions, narrowing down until you get to hear the truth behind the answers. People are so afraid to answer, to give their “Truth” for fear of exposing themselves and leaving themselves in a compromising position or a position where they are uncomfortable – out of their “comfort zone,” that I feel it is necessary, in order to get to the truth, that you ask questions, making them feel comfortable in the asking and getting the answers that you need.

Gosh! It sounds like I am a past master of interrogation, but no! It is simply the addition of a skill in order to make one listen better, to make understanding better, to make communication better!

Well done for a great article!

Kind regards
Kevin

]]>