healthy-conversation

14 Ways to Become an Incredible Listener1. Be present and provide your undivided attention.2. Seek first to understand, then to be understood.3. Listen attentively and respond appropriately.4. Minimize or eliminate distractions.5. Focus your attention and energy with singleness of purpose on what the other person is saying.6. Quiet your mind and suspend your thoughts to make room in your head to hear what is said__n the moment!7. Ask questions and demonstrate empathy.8. Use your body language and nonverbal cues constructively and pay attention to theirs.9. Follow the rhythm of their speech; hear their tone.10. Repeat and summarize what you have heard them say to confirm understanding.11. Be open-minded and non-defensive.12. Respond rather than react. 13. Be respectful, calm, and positive.14. Try to resolve conflicts, not win them.

Your first words will outlive your conversations and impact how you are remembered, liked, or regarded. Wouldn__ you enjoy opening conversations with ease and mutual recognition? The challenging part is that it can be . . . awkward!

Speaking on StageSpeakers and presenters have only a few short seconds before their audience members begin forming opinions. True professionals know that beginning with impact determines audience engagement, the energy in the room, positive feedback, the quality of the experience, and whether or not their performance will be a success. A few of the popular methods which you can use to break the ice from the stage are:_ Using music._ Using quotes._ Telling a joke._ Citing statistics._ Showing a video._ Asking questions._ Stating a problem._ Sharing acronyms._ Sharing a personal story._ Laying down a challenge._ Using analogies and comparisons._ Taking surveys; raise your hand if . . . Once you refine, define, and discover great conversation starters, you will enjoy renewed confidence for communicating well with new people.

Now let__ look at the flip side. When a diligent and caring person receives your complaint, they have the power to turn a challenge into a triumph. Through active listening, they demonstrate that your satisfaction is their top priority. They not only seek to solve your problem, but they are dedicated to re-earning your trust, your respect, and keeping your business.

Becoming an empathetic listener helps you to better understand how another person feels and why they communicate as they do.

Being PresentYears ago, I attended a conference where the keynote speaker encouraged everyone to BE HERE NOW! It grabbed people's attention and reminded us that living, loving, listening, and laughing all occur in the present moment.

When you become an actively engaged listener, you will develop the mindful awareness that active listening involves multiple layers and distinct levels.

Meeting someone for the first time has significance, but for some people, the awkwardness can be so great that they avoid a conversation altogether. The person who may be shy, introverted, or afraid of sounding stupid may just choose to remain silent rather than take the risk of engaging in embarrassing dialogue.

If you have ever experienced this type of unprofessional treatment, I doubt you would even consider giving them business in the future. Interrupting, ignoring, patronizing, or antagonizing a customer is like pouring gas on a fire and creates a more explosive situation than the original complaint. Still, it continues to happen every day, costing companies millions in lost revenue.

Your heightened awareness of their perceptions, experiences, emotions, and personality styles can reveal why they feel the way they do so that you can choose your responses wisely and compassionately.

My success with customers on the telephone wasn__ by using pushy sales methods, but by engaging people in meaningful conversations which could lead to friendships on the phone before I ever met them. I would ask questions, listen to their stories, respond to their needs, develop rapport, and earn their business. When we would finally meet in person, it felt less like an introduction and more like a reunion. It was not only good business, we had fun in the process!

Become keenly aware of these three layers to discover whether you're listening with interest and intent for excellent communication and understanding__r are you unintentionally sabotaging potentially phenomenal conversations. Knowledge of the listening planes will raise your awareness. And as you apply these, enjoy the surprising difference.

Through the years, I have heard that the average person speaks at about 150-160 words per minute, but can listen at a rate of about 1,000 words per minute. What is going on during all that extra mind time? _ Our minds are racing ahead and preparing for the next thing we are going to say._ We are preoccupied with other thoughts, priorities, and distractions._ Our subconscious filters are thumbing through our database of memories, judgments, experiences, perspectives, and opinions to frame how we are going to interpret what we think someone is saying.

By your practice of active listening, everyone involved benefits because you . . ._ are more engaged and engaging;_ demonstrate that you are interested in others and what they have to say;_ make others feel important, respected, understood, and appreciated; _ improve your memory and retention;_ affirm to others that you are an authentic, caring, and compassionate person;make a great first and last impression

While active listening is crucial for optimal communication, we are faced with a dilemma which can perplex even the sincerest and engaged of individuals.

UN-Impressives of the Poor Listener_ Thinking about what you should have done, could have done, or need to do. _ Allowing your emotional reactions to take over._ Interrupting the person talking._ Replying before you hear all the facts._ Jumping to conclusions and making assumptions._ Being preoccupied with what you're going to say next. _ Getting defensive or being over-eager. _ One-upmanship__eeling the urge to compete and add something bigger, better, or more significant than what the speaker has to share._ Imposing an unsolicited opinion._ Ignoring and changing the subject altogether.

When my son Nick was five years old, he was sitting at the kitchen bar while I prepared dinner. In typical busy mother fashion, I was multitasking__ooking, cleaning, running the laundry, answering the phone, and attempting to listen to what he had to say.

Active listening requires being fully present and engaged in the moment.