Effective Listening Skills: Essential to Your Management Toolkit

Effective listening skills can make a world of difference to you as a manager, as well as to the people you manage. Most of us think we listen better than we actually do, so I’ll help make it easy for you. Here are “Helen’s 9 Rules for Lively Listening.”

1. Decide to listen

Make this conscious decision every time you enter a conversation. You’ll be surprised at how this focuses your attention and helps you listen to what the other person is saying instead of just waiting for your turn to speak — which is many people’s idea of listening!

2. Avoid selective listening

It can be difficult to truly listen to someone we don’t like. However, it’s a simple fact of life that we won’t like everyone we work with, or even everyone who reports to us. But as a manager, as a professional, don’t let that get in the way. The person may have something valuable to say, and how will you know if you don’t listen? Remember, it’s the song that matters, not the singer.

3. Give acknowledgment and feedback

It’s not enough for you to know you are listening — the other person has to know as well. Use body language signals such as a nod or a smile, or verbal cues such as “I hadn’t realized that”.

4. Ask appropriate questions

Asking questions is, of course, speaking; however, it’s also listening because it is a way of eliciting information from the other person. Confirm facts through closed-ended questions that can have one-word answers: are you coming to the meeting? Expand discussions through open-ended questions: how can we use that idea in the product launch?

5. Listen for non-verbal cues

If someone’s tone, body language and words are not congruent, you would be well advised to pay attention to the non-verbal signals. They are usually the ones that speak the truth.

6. Listen with your whole body

Leaning forward towards the speaker and keeping eye contact will confirm to him or her that you are listening. What’s more, it actually does help you listen effectively.

7. Separate fact from opinion and propaganda

If a person says something controversial or challenging, consider whether it is a fact, or just the person’s opinion masquerading as truth. Base your response on your understanding.

8. Control your emotional response

We all have “hot buttons” which, when triggered, can lead us into unwise reactions instead of considered responses. Learn to recognize how you physically feel when you are about to “lose it”; this lets you mentally step back before you respond and the result is always more professional.

9. Make notes

The act of taking notes promotes the act of listening, as well as showing that what the speaker is saying is important.

Effective listening skills are arguably among the most important skills in working with others. Improving your listening skills will make you a better manager.

Tips for New Managers Is Reactivated!

As you can clearly see from the dates of previous posts, Tips for New Managers hasn’t been an active blog for quite some time. I won’t bore you with the reasons, but suffice it to say that I’m back and so is this blog.

I won’t give you a schedule as to when or how often I will post, but it will be enough to supply you with a continuous stream of information that will help you as you struggle to come to grips with the skills you now need in your new role as a manager. To help me keep Tips for New Managers relevant and helpful, please do leave a comment with your specific challenges, questions, information needs etc., and I will do my best to address them in future posts. I look forward to hearing from you, and I hope you will visit often.

Also, check out The Manager’s Journey and claim your free audio program, 7 Mistakes New Managers Make and How You Can Correct Them.

Happy Managing!