The Lost Art of Listening

We have two ears and one mouth so we may listen more and talk the less.

Epictetus
Roman (Greek-born) slave & Stoic philosopher (55 AD – 135 AD)

A fleeting thought crossed my mind today, “People have forgotten how to listen.”  The more I contemplated the statement, the more I realized it’s not entirely true.  We still know how to listen, but we don’t practice it nearly as often as we probably should.

Last weekend I returned from the National Storytelling Festival, and it made me appreciate the seemingly lost art of listening.  So many storytellers got up on stage with nothing more than a mic, and a few thousand attentive audience members.  They had people willing to sit and listen to them with undivided attention.  I didn’t see anyone in the audience leaned over talking to their neighbor, sitting with a bowed head and locked gaze on their iPhone, or staring off into La-La Land.  This audience was fully engaged.

Listening is something that we’ve not forgotten, but practice less often these days.  One friend of mine talks incessantly.  It’s refreshing from time to time because I feel no pressure to have anything interesting to say; there’s rarely an opportunity for me to add anything to the conversation.  It may sound like a one-sided relationship, but she regularly provides an opportunity to practice my listening skills.

Listening and hearing are two entirely different things.  Are you listening to your creatives when they offer you thoughts and suggestions?  Are you, creatives, listening to your clients when they make a request or ask for changes?  Both parties must be sure to practice the art of listening.  Miscommunication regularly leads to dissatisfaction, so be sure you’re listening to one another.