A man went to see a doctor after falling out-of-sorts for a few weeks. “Have you been treated by anyone else?” asked the doctor. “No sir,” replied the man, “but I did go see a pharmacist.” The doctor scolded him for seeking a non-medical opinion. “What kind of idiotic advice did he give you?” The man thought for a minute and replied, “Well, he told me I should come and see you!”

Yes, taking time to listen, as well as carefully wording your response, will lead to greater success in your interaction with others. Next time you have a chance, try these simple listening tips:

Focus on the person’s comments, not what you will need to say. Wait until three seconds have passed since their last comment before you respond.
Get permission to take notes. This way, you are forced to concentrate on what the other person is saying.
Make eye contact: when you can see what color eyes they have, you had the contact you need.
Repeat a small portion of the comments back to the person following their conclusion, to use as a summary of their comment. This will show that you have listened to the conversation.
When you are on the phone, place your end on mute to save you from interrupting during the individual’s comments when at all possible. Just be quick on the mute release to respond.
Follow-up each conversation with a summary of what you heard the individual say and, if proper, what actions will be taken. This way, you can be assured of conversation clarity.

The end result is not to rush and not to assume. Listening requires time, patience and determination.

It also takes practice. You will find the more you practice, the better you become. Soon, you will find that the premise of why we have 2 ears and 1 mouth is well founded! Listen well and you will gain success in both personal and professional interactions. Good luck!