The words being cried were that he didn’t want to go to school. We were making negative progress in our quest to get ready.
My son’s sensory sensitivity is off the charts.
I wasn’t listening.
Typically, I would either ignore the complaint or do the opposite and try to solve the stated issue. Usually I was wrong.
I decided to listen. Not with my ears. But with my heart, my intuition, my soul.
Then I could hear / then I heard him.
What he really was saying was that he wants to make his clothes feel right so he can be comfortable in school.
Imagine if we would listen to our clients, to our customers, to our families with more than just our ears??
Listening the right way is about focus. You take the focus off of yourself and put it where it belongs, on the other person.
Listen with Purpose
When you start to focus on them, when you truly focus – you stop listening to only what you hear – you begin to feel what they are saying.
Listening is paying attention.
Listening is remembering.
Listening is knowing.
Listening is sensing.
Listening is feeling.
Act
Once you hear, you must act. Action is proof of listening. Action shows commitment and respect.
Once we listen to our clients, we must act. Act on what you hear.
Actions get noticed. Actions build trust.
Take action and build better relationships.
Actions of trust build businesses.
Bringing it All Together
Once we listen we learn. We understand. We feel.
Each moment of our life influences the next. The more we are present, the more we truly listen, the better our life will be.
The more we listen, the more we can help others.
While life is not always about the destination, we did make it to school (on-time even).
Your Turn: How have you learned to listen? What impact has “true listening” had on your relationships?
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article originally published on LinkedIn