Listening Skills

Business Communication

 The most basic of all human needs is the

need to understand and be understood. The
best way to understand people is to listen to
them.
- Ralph. G. Nichols

What is Listening?
An active activity that involves receiving,
deciphering, and perceiving a message with
an intention to respond.

It is a prerequisite for good conversation

 If we are to talk more than we were to listen,

we would have two mouths and one ear.
- Mark Twain

To Listen meansL

Look Interested

Involve yourself by responding

Stay on target

Test your understanding

Evaluate the message

Neutralize your Feelings

10 Commandments of Listening
1. STOP TALKING!
2. PUT THE SPEAKER AT EASE.
3. SHOW THAT YOU WANT TO LISTEN.
4. REMOVE DISTRACTIONS.
5. EMPATHIZE.
6. BE PATIENT.
7. HOLD YOUR TEMPER.
8. AVOID ARGUMENTS AND CRITICISM.
9. ASK QUESTIONS.
10. STOP TALKING!

By K. Davis, Human Behavior at Work, McGraw Hill, 1972a

Principles of effective listening

Stop talking
Do not lose focus
Put the speaker at ease
Remove distractions
Empathize
Be patient
Avoid bias
Try to form a complete picture (proper linkages)
Also observe the non-verbal communication

Types of listening

Active Listening
Work place Listening
Discriminative Listening
Comprehensive Listening
Therapeutic Listening
Critical Listening and
Appreciative Listening.

Active listening
Active listening is a communication technique
used in counselling, training and conflict
resolution, which requires the listener to give
a feed back to the speaker about what they
hear

Workplace listening
Workplace listening is a type of active
listening that is generally employed in a
professional environment.

Reflective listening
Reflective listening is a communication strategy
involving two key steps: seeking to understand a
speaker's idea, then offering the idea back to the
speaker in order to confirm that the idea has
been understood correctly.
It attempts to "reconstruct what the client is
thinking and feeling and to relay this
understanding back to the client"

Discriminative listening
Here the objective is to distinguish sounds and
try to gather information, emotions, etc.
This objective doesn't take into account the
meaning; instead the focus is largely on sounds.
In a basic level class this can be as simple as
distinguishing the gender of the speaker or the
number of the speakers etc.

Comprehensive listening
Here the focus is on 'understanding or
comprehending the message'.
Depending on many factors (both individual
and social) people can end up understanding
the same message in different ways.

Therapeutic listening
Here the listener's role is to be a sympathetic
listener without much verbal response.
In this kind of listening the listener allows
somebody to talk through a problem.
This kind of listening is very important in
building good interpersonal relations.

Critical listening
Here the listeners have to evaluate the
message.
Listeners have to critically respond to the
message and give their opinion.

Appreciative listening
Appreciative listening is a type of listening
behavior where the listener seeks certain
information which will appreciate/ enjoy, or
that which helps meet his/her needs and
goals.
One uses appreciative listening when listening
to good music, poetry or maybe even the
stirring words of a great leader
Here the focus is on enjoying what one listens.

Importance of good listening

Makes communication meaningful
Appropriate transmission of information
Appropriate understanding and scope for
feedback
Builds confidence and relationships
Instrumental in solving tricky issues effectively
Provides viable solutions to problems
Eliminates scope for any confusion

Why Is Listening Important in a

Business Organisation?

Gain Information and ideas

Develop relationships and trust
Maintains reputation
Reduces conflict
Motivates employees
Viable solutions

Barriers to effective listening

Familiarity with the topic of discussion
Knowing the answer
I am always right and I know everything
attitude
Trying to influence others
Disturbance and distractions
Personal bias
Unwillingness to listen
Distance
Too many people speaking at one time