Improving your listening skills

1. Improving Your Listening Improving Your Listening
SkillsSkills
How to be an Active ListenerHow to be an Active Listener

3. Active ListeningActive Listening
►Good listening skills are important in
school
the workplace
day-to-day living
►Yet most of us receive very little training in
effective listening.

4. ►Take the Effective Listening Quiz!Take the Effective Listening Quiz!

5. Good Listeners:
►Minimize or remove any barriers to communication that may threaten their
effectiveness.
►Physically face towards and pay attention to the speaker.
►Listen for and verbally confirm the speaker's intent or purpose.
►Confirm the content or the speaker's request (the who, what, where, when, why
and how).
►Clarify the degree of importance of the request to the speaker. What is the
reason, need or urgency of the request?
►Recognize the level of emotion demonstrated by the speaker.
►Summarize and share their understanding of what is being requested.
►Indicate the level of response they will be able to provide.

6. Factors That Hinder Listening
►Many factors hinder our listening. Here are
a few examples:
Daydreaming.
Preparing our responses ahead of time.
Thinking about other people, places or things.

7. 7 Ways to Improve Your Listening
►Here are 7 strategies and suggestions to help you
improve your listening skills.
1.) Increase your listening span:
►Try to resist the temptation to interrupt.
►Make sure the speaker has had a complete chance to make his
or her point before you speak.
►If you don't get the whole message, ask the speaker to repeat
what they said.

8. Ways to Improve Your Listening
►2.) Take time to listen:
Don't put obvious limitations on your listening
time - the speaker will feel rushed.
►3.) Listen between the lines:
Don't just listen to what is being said.
Try to understand the attitudes, needs and
motives behind the words.

9. Ways to Improve Your Listening
►4.) Give your full attention:
Nodding or interjecting occasionally to clarify a
point lets the speaker know you are interested.
If the speaker pauses briefly, don't rush to fill
the silence.
Use open-ended questions to encourage
elaboration.

10. Ways to Improve Your Listening
►5.) Restate the message:
When you are sure that the speaker has
finished, restate the main points.
This is a good organizing strategy for you.
 It also gives the speaker assurance that the
message has been received.

11. Ways to Improve Your Listening
►6.) Listen for ideas as well as facts:
A good listener makes an effort to understand what the
facts add up to.
►7.) Don't monopolize:
Resist the urge to dominate a situation or to feel that
you know everything about a situation.
Be open to new ideas and allow the speaker to have his
or her say.