Did you ever watch the show Frasier and do you remember his famous tag-line from his radio show "This is Dr. Frasier Crane, I'm listening."
I love that line and it got me to thinking about the Art of Listening. Many of us think about ourselves "I'm a great listener" but are we really?
Do you often find yourself thinking about what you're going to say next instead of truly listening to the person speaking? I think we're all guilty of that from time to time.
I've also read a lot of posts lately on the subject of listening and if we're all talking about it, perhaps there's a problem that needs fixing. When I think about listening I think about the difference it makes to our clients, our relationship with them and the future of that relationship and it comes down to this:
"Consider every opportunity to listen an opportunity to learn"
Most of us fall into various types on non listening habits from time to time and often the person speaking, the environment and the content can greatly influence our desire or lack of desire to truly listen. Listening is a combination of hearing, understanding and remembering.
Bad listening habits consist of failing to pay attention or paying attention to the wrong things.
Here's what you don't want to be considered...
Pseudo Listener: ignores you because they have something else on their mind that's more important than 
what you are saying. They will often give you the impression they are paying attention, perhaps by looking at you occasionally or nodding their head but they are actually not really listening.
Selective Listener: They only respond to the parts of your conversation that they are actually interested in and only pay attention after key words that grab their attention.
Defensive Listener: They actually listen and pay attention to you the most, the only problem is that they take everything you say as a personal attack.
Stage Hog Listener: This person is actually a non listener. They are more interested in sharing and expressing their ideas and feelings and don't really care about what others are saying.
Ambusher: They too carefully listen to what you have to say but only because they intend to counter attack the speaker and challenge them on what they are saying.
Insulated Listener: This listener nods and answers you but their primary focus is to be tuned into the pleasant things you have to share and they ignore anything that seems troublesome.
Insensitive Listener: Not able to receive another person message very clearly because they are too focused on key words being said and not able to look beyond those words to understand the feelings the speaker is trying to convey.
Characteristics of a great listener:
- Patient
- Compassionate
- Quiet
It's only when we realize what we're doing and how we're doing it that can bring the awareness needed to make a positive change.
Just think what a difference truly listening will do for our clients, our business and our own knowledge - we won't miss out on the really important information and we will automatically build a trust with the person we're speaking with and listening to. (think about all the great things your clients share with you when you're out looking at properties, take notes and rely on that information to build your relationship and trust with them.)
Learning to effectively listen involves developing the ability to concentrate, learn to handle and ignore distractions and make sure we completely understand before making judgment.
How can we practice and improve our listening skills? By actively listening. To do this, you need to employ a feedback process to let the speaker know you care, you're interested in them and what they have to say.
How to be a great listener:
- Look at the speaker
- Ask questions
- Take notes
- Don't interrupt
- Don't change the subject
- Respond verbally and nonverbally
"Why not work on being the company that others love to keep"
Let me know what you're thinking...I'm listening:
Are you (or will you) be more aware of the kind of listener you are?
Have you ever received information from a client by truly listening and it made a difference in your relationship with them?
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More on listening:
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Ready to take your Marketing to new levels? Anne Marie Malfi ~ Malfi Marketing Solutions.com ~ Copyright 2009
If it's not evident to you by now, consumers are very knowledgeable and computer savvy and are using the Internet to not only search for homes but for real estate agents and real estate professionals who they feel are like minded and can lead them to the results they are looking for.
As we all know, there are only 24 hours in a day to get it all done...are you focusing on the right stuff to grow your business and meet your client's needs? Contact us today to get started!
Ready to take your Marketing to new levels? Anne Marie Malfi ~ Malfi Marketing Solutions.com ~ Copyright 2011
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This is great advice! Thanks Anne Marie!