“I had such a tough day today, I found it pretty overwhelming.”
“That sucks. What’s for dinner?”
or
“I’m really struggling with this situation, I don’t know how to deal with it.”
“Well, you just need to build your resilience and get on with it, be professional.”
Hmmmm.
When’s the last time you felt deeply listened to, truly heard?
How did it impact you? How did you feel?
Being deeply listened to can have a profound impact on us.
It can even be life saving.
Deep listening involves fully focusing on and understanding the speaker, without judgment or interruption, and creating a safe, empathetic space for them to say whatever they need to say.
It can be so easy for our own thoughts and judgments to creep in, and while we’re paying attention to our own internal monologue, we aren’t listening to the words and meaning of the person in front of us.
So staying focussed matters – it builds trust, connection and fosters honest and open communication.
And of course if we’ve built trust and connection, we’re more likely to be able to resolve conflicts in a healthy way that doesn’t corrode the relationship.
Listening without judgment has personal benefits too. It allows us to experience different perspectives, which helps to broaden our thinking, encourages open-mindedness, and enhances personal growth.
In other words, making space for someone else’s perspective gives us the opportunity to examine our own.
What a gift. 💚
What’s going on in your day today that gives you an opportunity to deeply listen to someone?
And also consider, what’s going on in your day today that means you’ll miss (dismiss?) an opportunity to deeply listen to someone?
