How can we become mindful listeners?

Listen to understand, not to respond

The idea of awarding bonus points to the person who starts the discussion at a group discussion has evolved to be widely misused when it is about ‘Listening to Respond’. We are in a hurry to respond to questions, not because we are equipped with the appropriate information or response but because we probably want to make our presence felt. And why not? After all, visibility matters. Little do we realise that by doing this, not only do we dilute the listening experience, we also put ourselves at great risk for negative publicity in case we don't get the question right. To be a mindful listener, it is very important to listen with the sole purpose of gaining deeper insights and understanding. 

Bring in some empathy

As judgement and bias are so closely placed, its best to avoid any form of judgment while trying to be mindful listeners. One of the effective ways is to empathize with the speaker(s) in the conversation. Empathy raises our Emotional Quotient and opens up our brain to the world of endless emotions that can be felt and decoded during the course of a dialogue, meeting or discussion, thus helping us to understand wholeheartedly and comprehensively.

Ask questions

Once empathy is in place, it is easier to establish a connection with the speaker. One of the ways to deepen our understanding and increase the level of listening is to ask pertinent, well-articulated, non-intimidating questions.  It’s important to be conscious of the reactions of the speaker when the questions are posed, in order to sense discomfort, aggression, relief etc, which will only help expand our understanding

Pre-conditioning the mind to listen

Often, prior to a social gathering or an important meeting, we pre-condition our mind to talk well, present effectively or network actively. On the contrary, how often do we tell ourselves to listen intently, remember accurately or understand comprehensively what we heard? Our brain is an amazing device - all we need to do is to train it appropriately to focus on the important activities which have lasting long-term impact, listening being one of them. Instruct the brain that it’s not only important to pitch yourself effectively at the next networking event, but it’s also important to receive information about the other attendees to build that resourceful database that you can tap into.