-
Listening is a key element of communication.
-
A good leader is a good listener.
-
We can assist our youth to improve their listening skills.
Being a good listener is a major part of becoming an excellent leader.
Leaders realize that they do not have all the answers. They need to be able to listen to others and understand what is being shared.
Listening is one of the most important skills you can have. How well you listen has a major impact on the quality of your relationships with others.
WHY LISTEN?
There are many reasons to listen.
We listen:
-
To obtain information;
-
To better understand;
-
For enjoyment; and,
-
To learn.
HOW TO IMPROVE:
Improving listening skills is not difficult.
Make the conscious decision to become a better listener.
You will develop a greater insight into what people are saying.
Practice a few simple exercises to build good listening habits.
Make listening a priority by:
-
Being present.
-
Focusing your full attention on the speaker. Follow the golden rule.
-
Showing you are listening. Smile, nod, or encourage the speaker with a yes, etc.
-
Focusing on body language and look at the speaker.
-
Think about what they are saying, not what you want to say.
-
Not jumping to conclusions before you have heard the whole message.
-
Removing distractions such as smartphones, eliminating noises, not fidgeting, and not having any prejudices.
-
Controlling your reactions.
-
Keeping an open mind and remain flexible to others’ ideas
-
Not interrupting with counter arguments. Interrupting wastes time. It frustrates the speaker and limits the full understanding of the message.
-
Allowing the speaker to finish each point before asking questions.
-
Summarizing the speaker’s comments. We can summarize what we heard by saying something like, “I want to make sure I understood you. You are saying …..?” or “What I heard you say was …”
PROMOTING LISTENING DURING GROUP COACHING:
Have some participants perform roles which promotes listening. Here are some examples:
-
Wizard of Ahs: -Listens as others are speaking and counts and reports on filler words such as Ah, Um, So, Like, etc.
-
Speech Coach: Listens to talks delivered. Gives positive feedback. Comments on what was done well and suggests some possible improvements.
-
Quizzer: Listens to what was discussed throughout the session and asks questions to test how well everyone was listening.
-
Interrupter Counter: Listens for anyone who may have interrupted someone else whilst they were speaking. Reports at the end of the meeting.
This can make it fun and entertaining and emphasizes how to improve our listening skills.
AN EXAMPLE: HOW TO UNBOIL AN EGG:
At a recent youth group session one of the participants told us that you can uncook an egg. She insisted there was a video about this.
She went home and sent a link of the video to me. I showed the video, “How to unboil an egg” at the following meeting.
We watched it and then discussed what we had seen. There were different interpretations of the video. After discussing what we had seen, we watched it again.
As we all did not hear and understand the same thing, this was a good lesson on listening and communication.
Listening is a key element of communication and leadership.
We can assist our young future leaders in our group coaching to improve their listening skills.
Please share your ideas on how we can assist our youth to enhance their listening skills.
If you require more details, please contact us.
LEARN MORE:
Are you are interested in learning more about group coaching?
If so, contact us to obtain a report on a simple and easy system on how to set up group coaching programs for youth. You can do this in the ‘Contact us‘ section of the website.
Please contact us to enter the discussion, REQUEST A FREE COPY OF THE GROUP COACHING PLAYBOOK. JOIN THE REGULAR COACHES FORUM.
Wishing you lots of love and laughter, as always.
Fred Jones
Victoria, BC Canada
Fred Jones