Listen Like A Leader Should

Written by: Shaun Killian http://leadershipskills.org.au

Did you know that research1 shows that your ability to listen is linked to your success as
a leader? Sadly, most leaders do not listen as well as they should2.

1. Focus your attention on the person you are listening to. This simple strategy is
easy to understand yet hard to do amidst the many things you have on your mind.
However, this is what true listening demands. Put your distracting thoughts aside
and attend to what the person before you is saying.
2. Open your mind to information that may challenge your existing take on the
person and the topic being discussed. We all have our own beliefs about people
and the way things work within our organizations. While this quirky human
tendency has its uses, it can blind us to seeing anything beyond what we already
perceive. Open your mind to all the facts and to the possibility that your existing
take on things may not be perfectly accurate.
3. Shift your perspective so that you understand the topic at hand through the eyes
of this person, rather than your own. To do this well, you need to understand not
only what goes on in their mind and why they think that way, but also what they
feel about it and why. Such listening helps us understand the matter at hand from a
broader perspective than the more typical “how-does-this-affect-me-and-my-
patch” response.
4. Look for ways to help. All talk and no action will not change things for the
better. The desire to improve things lies at the very heart of what it means to be a
leader. You can demonstrate this desire in the way you listen to people.
Sometimes, you may feel that you cannot truly make a difference in your
organization, but as the Starfish story by Loren Eisley so nicely illustrates, you
can—one person at a time.

1. Bechler, C., & Johnson, S. D. (1995). Leading & Listening. Small Group
Research , 26, 77-85. ↩
2. See CCL’s Leading Effectively podcast, Listening & Leadership ↩

Listen Like A Leader Should © 2010

 Leadership Skills Australia
http://leadershipskills.org.au

Leadership And Management

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management

Listen Like A Leader Should © 2010