Listen to others like kids are watching TV.

I am currently reading an inspiring book (further infos at the bottom) and I stumbled across this piece of advice. LISTEN TO OTHERS LIKE KIDS ARE WATCHING TV. I instantly made it my New Year’s resolution – which is kind of a big deal for me, as I usually don’t do New Year’s resolutions. So why this time?

Being a father, I have a pretty good understanding how hard it is to interact with kids when they are watching TV. At least my kids are fully absorbed by the plot and focus on the screen with every fibre of their bodies. And it made me think…

How do I acutally listen to people when having a conversation? Am I only ‚hearing‘ while at the same time thinking about what to reply, what to say next or am I actually fully focused, trying to understand my opposite? How good would it feel to have someone acutally listening to you with the same intensity, blending out everything else?

I used the first week of 2019 to conduct a little field study and it led to rather devestating results. I caught myself drifting away in conversations A LOT. Structuring the next arguments in my head and losing track of the discussion. But I also achieved some first wins. When I managed to listen empathically, discussions took unexpected, exciting, interesting, mutually beneficial turns. It was amazing to observe the differences.

I am sticking with it. Maybe you want to give it a try?

Book: Dave Kerpen – The Art of People; www.artofpeoplebook.com