Can you imagine times when silence has the loudest voice? The art of listening is a solution to almost all human problems. If you really listen to what the other person has to say, you virtually make him feel important too and this is what every human being yearns for. People feel elevated as you listen to them when they tell you how handsome, how smart, how honest, and how intelligent they are.
When you listen to a person’s ideas and opinions sincerely, you let him feel that he is wanted. Psychologically he feels secure. No one wants to be a non-entity. Even the lowliest of the peon wants to be treated as something useful. True, everyone wants to be treated as somebody.
Listening skill wins you a friend forever: It lubricates the machinery of all social relationships in general.
The officer who listens to what his employees say becomes the most popular. Most of his problems are amicably solved. The employees who are allowed to, give their advice on matters of importance develop their individual identity. And such employees prove much more productive and constructive.
The father who keeps the doors of his mind open to his children develops excellent family relations. He makes his children feel duly valuable, and develop a sense of self-esteem. The same applies to husband, wife, relatives, and friends.
The more patiently one listens, the thicker the relations. One can even mend a problem person when the latter is properly listened to.
Learning the art of listening requires tact and patience. Just make it a hobby to take an interest in others’ problems. This will not only make you listen more but will also make you forget your own problems. You will not only develop good relations with others but most of your problems would be solved automatically through relations.
Learning the art of listening is a matter of practice. The more you practice, the more proficient you will become in listening. There is nothing to lose. You certainly have much more to gain!
Believe it or not, the art of listening is your ticket to success. It may seem difficult to learn, but once learned, it pays dividends.
“Much talking is the cause of danger. Silence is the means of avoiding misfortune. The talkative parrot is shut up in a cage. Other birds, without speech, fly freely about.”–Saskya Pandita (1182-1251), Tibetan Grand Lama of Saskya
Thanks for this! When I listen to my 30-year-old son’s problems, some of which are LARGE, I hurt, and I want to fix them. You have reminded me that by simply listening, without judging — neither approving nor disapproving — and, especially, trusting HIM to fix them… and helping him “air” the problems that are clashing around in his brain — I am affirming him, and doing more good than I would do if I could simply wave a magic wand and make his troubles disappear. Thanks again… Mary
every one should practice this policy. Its a good idea to make everyone happy. God bless you.
Its well said that “There’s a big difference between showing interest and really taking interest.”
Roughly speaking as listeners we think about max 500 words per minute but the normal speaking rate is about 125 to 150 words per minute. That creates a lot of room for communication to break down or for our mind to wander! We should try to hear everything that is being said, listen to the entire message and then respond. Normally the temptation is to fill the extra space with own thoughts and/or responses to what is being said, but sometimes filling this space with own thoughts or responses take us out of the current conversation. And, we miss valuable information because you’ve moved on to a new topic – without the speaker.
Who speaks, sows; Who listens, reaps.
— Argentine Proverb
Thanks….. Vinod
Thanks Mary, Sunny and Vinod thanks for your blessings and increasing value to the post. Yes Mary I can say this policy is the magic wand and Sunny certainly its a good idea to make every one happy. I trust there is a lots of difference between pleasing someone or making someone happy, and above all Vinod has added a lot of information to reap n sow.