Everyone knows how important listening is -- but how many of us really listen with empathy? Listen with joy? Completely focus on what the other person is saying without your mind crawl interrupting?
Let me share with you a quick story about the power of empathic listening.
I founded the Literacy Council of Highlands in 1993. One of our first orders of business was to recruit tutors to work with children who were struggling in school. Luckily, I live in a community with a huge population of retired professionals, so we had an enormous pool of volunteer talent.
Time and again, volunteers would be sheepish about tutoring. They did not feel qualified. I always asked them: are you compassionate and passionate? If yes, you are qualified! I told them that I could teach them everything they needed to know about tutoring if they were first both compassionate and passionate about being of service.
What we found was that the magic of our one-on-one tutoring was not in the tutoring talent of the volunteers (even though their talent was truly significant). The magic was in the volunteer listening to the student. Focusing on the student with 100% of their attention. Being there for the student.
In fact, during that time we learned that a study had shown that the average child enjoyed no more than approximately 20 minutes a day of real listening from their parents. 20 minutes! And we were giving those children an entire hour of delicious, uninterrupted attention.
We tutored children with learning disabilities, children with different learning styles, and children from dysfunctional families. Every child we ever worked with improved. EVERY ONE. That is the power of listening.
In your role as an entrepreneur, you have many opportunities to tune in and listen to your customers.
Meet your clients where they are. By that, I suggest that you take some time when you first talk with a prospective client to determine exactly where they are emotionally, intellectually, and even spiritually. What are their expressed and unexpressed needs? What is it that they want to have happen? How, specifically, can you be of real service to them?
Let your clients and your market tell you where the pain is for them. If you listen -- really listen -- your clients (and you) will experience a true transformation.
Time and again, volunteers would be sheepish about tutoring.
Posted by: ClubPenguin | May 18, 2011 at 02:43 AM
When one door of happiness closes, another opens but often we look so long at the closed door that we don’t see the one which has been opened for us.
Posted by: Tiffany & Co Outlet | June 18, 2011 at 03:17 AM
I'm interested in such offer,The sound quality in these podcasts is really poor. I feel bad about complaining about something that is free, but I think it is important.
we wan change our life but no idea for do.
Posted by: Coach outlet | September 14, 2011 at 03:30 AM