Friday 7 June 2013

Life Skill #2: Listen


Are you sure, you listen ? Is listening for sure a Life Skill ? Yes, my friend, listening is much dearer life skill, it is actually a survival skill, it will keep you alive in the time of natural selection.

The act of listening is referred primarily in two intents: listening for yourself and listening for others.

Listening for yourself is something related to 'sniff & scurry' (of 'Who Moved My Cheese' fame) wherein one  should listen with ears to ground (on the rails) for the sound of the train. It doesn't matter if one is in the tunnel or not; whether one can see the light at the end of tunnel or not - one needs to keep checking the rails. That's how you survive - you know the sound, listen to it, place thy ears firmly on the rails & listen

Listening for other is bit different. It's actually paired with the act of 'talk'. This is something related to latest blog of 'Tom Peters' - titled 'Time to revamp leadership training'. He is brave. He says - 'Leaders do People'  and to accomplish this - Leaders must listen, Leaders must become aggressive listener. Simply put -  "The goal: Become a full-fledged "professional listener." "

Over many years, I have met many organizational leaders, however I know only few who actually listen - and 'coz they listen they 'do' people. They bring out wonderful 'Wow' each time they interact (listen followed by talk)

The art of listening is not mastered in day or few. It takes patience (actually courage) to be on a chair & listen.

It will take effort to purposefully stop in between and listen to the thoughts of peer, even thyself or the surroundings. Practice the habit by reading a lot of stuff of wider spectrum, visiting places, get into situations, attend interviews, participate in fresher hiring drives over weekends, attend lectures, listen to audio books, stop watching TV - visuals interfere with listening, stop discussion and just listen, play with kids who talk a lot, solve without uttering a single word, use power of silence, improve vocab and use proverbs (this require command on language & literature both).

Doesn't matter where you are, who you are - stop talking; listen for a while, listen to the air, enjoy the fragrance, listen to sound of your soul; connect to thyself. Connect to Life Skill #1: Be Aware