Chapter – 01 Listening SkillsMeaning: - Listening might be defined as the art of hearing and understanding what someone is saying. Each letter of the word listen will guide you towards becoming a better listener.

Definition of ListeningListening is defined as the learned skill, in which we can receive sounds through ears, and transform them into meaningful messages. To put simply, it is the process of diligently hearing and interpreting the meaning of words and sentences spoken by the speaker, during the conversation.

Listening is a bit difficult, because it requires concentration and attention, and the human mind is easily distracted. People use it as a technique to comprehend, what is being said, through different verbal and non-verbal signs, i.e. how it is being said? What type of words is used? Tone and pitch of voice, body language and so on.

Active listening is the key element; that makes the communication process effective

Listening Vs Hearing

Basis for Comparison Hearing Listening

MeaningHearing refers to one's ability to perceive sounds, by receiving vibrations through ears.

Listening is something done consciously, that involve the analysis and understanding of the sounds you hear.

What is it? An ability A skillNature Primary and continuous Secondary and temporaryAct Physiological Psychological

Involves Receipt of message through ears. Interpretation of the message received by ears.

Process Passive bodily process Active mental processOccurs at Subconscious level Conscious levelUse of senses Only one More than one

Reason We are neither aware nor we have any control over the sounds we hear.

We listen to acquire knowledge and receive information.

Concentration Not required Required

1. Appreciative Listening: - listening for pleasure

and enjoyment, as when we listen to music, to a comedy routine, or to an entertaining speech. This is listening for deriving aesthetic pleasure, as we do when we listen to comedian, musician….

Types of Listening

listening to provide emotional support for the

speaker, as when a psychiatrist listens to a patient or when we lend a sympathetic ear to a friend

When we listen to a distress friend who want to vent his feeling, where emotional and moral support is in the form of empathetic listening.

Empathetic Listening

listening to understand the message of a speaker, as

when we attend a classroom lecture or listen to directions for finding a friend’s house.

This type of listening is needed in the class-room when students have to listen to the lecturer to understand and comprehend the message.

Comprehensive / Informative Listening

listening to evaluate a message for purposes of

accepting or rejecting it, as when we listen to the sales pitch of a used-car dealer or the campaign speech of a political candidate

When the purpose is to accept or reject the message or to evaluate it critically, one requires this type of listening.

Critical Listening

When people listen attentively, their goal is to

understand and remember what they are hearing, attentive listeners have relational goals like giving a positive impression or demonstrating care.

Attentive Listening

The purpose of relationship listening is either

to help an individual or to improve the relationship between people. This is a part of Therapeutic listening brings to mind situation where counselors, medical persons allow troubled person to talk trough a problem.

Relationship Listening

Discriminative listening is the most basic

type of listening, whereby the difference between difference sounds is identified. If you cannot hear differences, then you cannot make sense of the meaning that is expressed by such differences. This is one reason why a person from one country finds it difficult to speak another language perfectly, as they are unable distinguish the subtle sounds that are required in that language.

Discriminative Listening

Biased listening happens when the person

hears only what they want to hear, typically misinterpreting what the other person says based on the stereotypes and other biases that they have. Such biased listening is often very evaluative in nature.

Biased listening

In today's high-tech, high-speed, high-stress world, communication is more important then ever, yet we seem to devote less and less time to really listening to one another. Genuine listening has become a rare gift—the gift of time. It helps build relationships, solve problems, ensure understanding, resolve conflicts, and improve accuracy. At work, effective listening means fewer errors and less wasted time. At home, it helps develop resourceful, self-reliant kids who can solve their own problems. Listening builds friendships and careers. Following are the tips to have effective listening.

Tips for Effective Listening

In most Western cultures, eye contact is considered

a basic ingredient of effective communication. When we talk, we look each other in the eye. That doesn't mean that you can't carry on a conversation from across the room, or from another room, but if the conversation continues for any length of time, you (or the other person) will get up and move. The desire for better communication pulls you together.

Face the speaker and maintain eye contact.

Now that you've made eye contact, relax. You don't have to stare fixedly at the other person. You can look away now and then and carry on like a normal person. The important thing is to be attentive.

Be attentive, but relaxed.

Listen without jumping to conclusions. Remember that the speaker is using language to represent the thoughts and feelings inside her brain. You don't know what those thoughts and feelings are and the only way you'll find out is by listening.

Keep an open mind.

Allow your mind to create a mental model of the information being communicated. Whether a literal picture, or an arrangement of abstract concepts, your brain will do the necessary work if you stay focused, with senses fully alert. When listening for long stretches, concentrate on, and remember, key words and phrases.

Listen to the words and try to picture what the speaker is saying.

Interrupting sends a variety of messages. It says: "I'm more important than you are." "What I have to say is more interesting, accurate or

relevant." "I don't really care what you think." "I don't have time for your opinion." "This isn't a conversation, it's a contest, and I'm

going to win."

Don't interrupt and don't impose your "solutions."

When you don't understand something, of course you should ask the speaker to explain it to you. But rather than interrupt, wait until the speaker pauses. Then say something like, "Back up a second. I didn't understand what you just said about…"

Wait for the speaker to pause to ask clarifying questions.

When you notice that your question has led

the speaker astray, take responsibility for getting the conversation back on track

Ask questions only to ensure understanding.

To experience empathy, you have to put

yourself in the other person's place and allow yourself to feel what it is like to be her at that moment. This is not an easy thing to do. It takes energy and concentration. But it is a generous and helpful thing to do, and it facilitates communication like nothing else does.

Try to feel what the speaker is feeling.

just nod and show your understanding through

appropriate facial expressions and an occasional well-timed "hmmm" or "uh huh."

The idea is to give the speaker some proof that you are listening, and that you are following her train of thought—not off indulging in your own fantasies while she talks to the ether.

Give the speaker regular feedback.

the majority of direct communication is probably

nonverbal. We glean a great deal of information about each other without saying a word. Face to face with a person, you can detect enthusiasm, boredom, or irritation very quickly in the expression around the eyes, the set of the mouth, the slope of the shoulders. These are clues you can't ignore. When listening, remember that words convey only a fraction of the message.

Pay attention to what isn't said—to nonverbal cues.

1. Be mentally prepared to listen2. Evaluate the speech, not the speaker.3. Be unbiased to the speaker by depersonalizing your feelings.4. Fight distractions by closing down sound sources.5. Ask questions to clarify thoughts.6. Paraphrase from time to time.7. Send appropriate non verbal signals from time to time.

Do’s for Listeners

1. Pay undue emphasis to the vocabulary as you can use the context to understand the meaning.2. Pay too much attention to the accessories and the clothing of the speaker.3. Prepare your responses while the speaker is speaking.4. Avoid preconceptions and prejudices.5. Get distracted by outside influences.6. Concentrate too hard.7. Interrupt too often.8. Show boredom to an uninteresting speaker.

Don'ts for Listeners

Being Non – evaluative: - Accept the ideas,

thoughts, values of speaker without making any judgment of right or wrong, good or bad, suitable or unsuitable.

Paraphrasing: - Express or ask to achieve better clarity.

Traits of Good Listener

Reflecting Implications: - giving suggestion to speaker to

understand more……. Reflecting Hidden Feelings: - try to understand the feelings

of speaker. Inviting Further Contribution: - if you haven’t heard or

understood enough, prompt speaker to give you more information.

Responding Non – verbally: - use body language to express your acceptance and understanding.

Traits of Good Listener

Thank You……

By Prof. Harshal KambleAsst. Professor, AJMVPS, Institute of Hotel Management and Catering Technology, Ahmednagar