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The Truth About Getting Your Point Across...
And Nothing But The
Truth
Part
X: The Truth About Being a Good Listener
Being an active and empathetic listener is an important part of any leader's job. A leader can be hit with anything from "I'm having a difficult time solving this problem" to "I just broke up with my girlfriend" and can quickly get themselves into a stressful situation. As leaders, you want to be empathetic to your team members and help them through tough times. At the same time, you need to ensure you don't make the problem worse by committing some errors which only make a difficult situation even more difficult.
This part contains three truths, as follows:
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Truth 46: Listening means letting them talk - So you may think, "Boy, this is stating the obvious!" Before you take that leap, think about a situation where a colleague was too quick to offer suggestions or where you had a colleague's problem solved before they had a chance to get it out in the open. Listening isn't only for the recipient to understand a problem; it is also for the sender to talk through a difficult issue and to get some things off his or her chest.
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Truth 47: Don’t hang out a therapist shingle unless you’re a therapist - Many of us enjoy helping out others with problems and being a listening ear to others problems. This is all fine and well, but it's important to do this in moderation and to not let it affect your performance on the job or your relationship with your colleague.
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Truth 48: Keep stressful meetings from spontaneously combusting - Sometimes listening to others' problems can quickly get you into a highly charged situation where the other person becomes angry, stressed, or despondent. Having one person not in control of his or her emotions is difficult enough; but when the other person loses control it becomes a powder keg. Keeping things in check and knowing what to do when things get charged up can help to keep the lid from blowing off.
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