Emedinews:Inspiration: The art of listening

An Inspirational Story
(Dr Brahm Vasudev)

This communication is based on a very interesting blog in the online version of the Harvard Business Review, written by business author and leadership advisor Ram Charan.  Titled ‘he Discipline of Listening’ the article offered noteworthy counsel about how to become a better listener – and, in the process, a better leader and team member.

The subject of the blog is timely because among the most common themes coming out of our recent faculty and staff engagement surveys was to “emulate best practices in communications.”  There is no doubt that listening skills are an essential component of effective communication.  We may hear well, but we often don’t listen fully. 

Therefore, I would like to share some of Ram Charan’s words of wisdom for becoming a disciplined and truly empathetic listener – advice that I, too, am taking to heart.  

• Sift for the nuggets in a conversation.  Then let the other person know that he/she was understood by probing, clarifying or further shaping those thoughts. 
• Consider the source. When working with peers, in and across teams, work to understand each person’s frame of reference.  Active listening energizes groups, encourages them to reach consensus, and helps them arrive at new and better solutions. 
• Slow down. It may be faster to make a decision based on information already at hand, but by doing so we often miss important considerations and opportunities to connect. 
• Keep yourself honest. Make a habit of asking yourself after interactions whether you understood the essence of what was said to you, the person's point of view, his/her context and emotion.  Also ask yourself whether that person knows that he/she was heard and understood.

Listening is a central competence for success.  Listening opens the door to truly connecting and is the gateway to building relationships and capability.

[Source: Joseph E. Kerschner, MD, Dean of the Medical School and Executive Vice President]