Listening might be the most powerful leadership trait to add to your toolkit. As a leader, itâs equally important to listen â and recognize whether youâre being heard.
Listening might be the most powerful leadership trait. Successful leadership requires effective communication, and having the ability to listen to everyone â regardless of their position â is a valuable skill a leader must possess.
A true leader who listens actively to others and develops positive relationships so people feel comfortable speaking openly. If people know that they can confide in you, then youâre well on your way to becoming a respected leader.
Whether youâre a leader evaluating your listening skills, or youâre looking for cues to assess whether youâre being heard, here are a few signs to help.
As you read this, consider times when youâre working with a subject matter expert to build your business. A good service provider will listen and guide you through your project based on your needs.
Trusted Marketing Advice
SIGN UP#1 Listening Before Speaking
I know. It can be hard sometimes. You get excited. You want to say something sooooo badly. For leaders, itâs hard not to be too excited to jump in with your ideas and experiences.
If youâre thinking of what youâre going to say, then youâve probably stopped listening. As a leader, thatâs the opposite of what you want to do.
Make a mental note of what you want to say. Then wait until the person has finished speaking.
If you donât wait, you might not learn whether your comments are applicable to the conversation.
We also get excited to share our thoughts, but we might miss a great gem if we interrupt someone.
#2 Listening Before Jumping to Conclusions
Iâm not discounting the importance of experience. But I will say experience isnât everything.
Iâve worked with leaders who are more concerned with the past than the present. Thatâs a perilous game.
Although the past shapes the future, the past isnât the only consideration when making complex decisions with widespread implications.
Good leader who listens for nuance and context. Although prior experience is an important factor in weighing decisions, a good leader doesnât jump to conclusions based on experience alone.
For example, when youâre collaborating with a service provider, alarms should be going off in your head if the person jumps to conclusions about your business based on past projects instead of evaluating how your project fits their skill set.
As a leader, you need to assess weighty decisions and although itâs easier sometimes to jump to conclusions, a more effective approach is to give space (and airtime) to perspectives beyond personal previous experiences.
#3 Leader Who Listens Will Ask Good Questions âŚ
One of the key ways to know if youâve been heard is whether someone asks questions after youâve finished talking. A leader listens to the details and the story â not just the facts.
One of the things Iâm working on is solutions-based questions to support and empower clients to develop the best technology decisions for their business based on data, projections, and needs. This is challenging sometimes because technology tends to overwhelm and confuse people. But if we can unpack those fears thatâs when the magic happens.
A good leader knows to ask questions. A great leader asks critical questions because the answers are essential to the path ahead.
#4 ⌠And Care About the Answers
Leaders ask meaningful questions â questions that arenât intended to be a âgotchaâ or lead to one answer and one answer only. A leader cares about the answers because it will affect the trajectory of what happens next.
For example, when I help a small business make technology decisions, I ask a lot of questions upfront. My philosophy is that no one knows your business more than you. And, itâs my responsibility to listen to the answers so I can assess possible solutions, if Iâm the best provider, and whether the answers are conflicting or confusing. If I donât listen to what a customer needs I have no idea how (or if) I can help.
Unless youâre a professional gunslinger, it behooves a you to ask a lot of questions AND carefully consider the answers.
#5 Leaders Avoid Premature Judgement
Technology is like taxes. When itâs working, itâs just like getting a big tax refund. When itâs not working, itâs like getting audited. Technology also creates the same levels of anxiety, stress, and general grumpiness found during tax season.
Thatâs why Iâm always seeking out the issues behind the emotions. Thereâs what someone says and how they say it.
Sometimes itâs so easy to say that the person is wrong based on how the information is delivered. Solely focusing on emotions might mean missing the problem altogether.
For example, when my husband throws up his hands and grumbles, âmy computer is brokenâ, it could mean any of the following: Iâm not getting any email, I canât open my browser, or I threw my laptop through a plate-glass window and it literally broke in half. (OK, so the last one has never happened, but the way he says it makes me think itâs possible that it could have happened.)
It became easier to fix his computer when I realized he was upset with the computer, not me.
Stress and circumstance matter.
A leader with active listening skills considers the feeling, motivation, and context behind what has been said before making a judgment. Itâs amazing to work with a leader who listens, then peels away the emotion without judgment to address the root problem.
Stress and circumstance matter. Leaders reserve judgment until the context is understood.
#6 Leader Who Listens Will Focus on the Speaker
Put down your cell phone.
Back away from your tablet or computer.
Focus on the person speaking.
Leaders understand the importance of respecting a personâs time. Leaders give the speaker their full attention.
When a leader is interrupted or triaging an important issue, itâs important to let the person know itâs not a good time to talk. Then be sure to circle back to the person when your attention wonât be divided and you can devote time to the speaker.
If you struggle with this, think about a time when someone was more interested in their cell phone than they were in you. I think weâve all done this, but it stinks, right?
A good question to ask yourself is, could I repeat back what is being said to me? Would I be able to make a statement like, âif I heard you correctlyâŚâ and repeat back what youâve heard?
When someone summarizes your words itâs a signal that youâve been heard.
Youâre a leader. Are you listening?
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