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Four Steps to Active Listening

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Lesson:

Four Steps to Active Listening

Course: Coaching for HR Professionals
Module: Coaching Skills
Lesson Type: Video
Lesson Duration: 3:16

Lesson Content

Human Beings think much more quickly than we speak. The average person speaks about 135-175 words in a minute, but can listen to 400-500. We often fill the differential with our thoughts, judgments, and daydreams. To really listen and be present you can use this model to remember and apply the various coaching skills inherent in active listening.

Be P R E S E N T - Present

The P stands for Paraphrase, reflect and reframe

The R if for Reaffirm, use encouraging gestures and sounds

The E is for Empathy, honor emotions and values

The S stands for Self-Manage, turndown the inner voice

The second E is for Enquire, ask deep clarifying questioning about the situation and the feelings evoked

The N stands for Next steps, summarize, express appreciation, discuss follow-up

And finally, the T stands for Thank employee for their time, thoughts, and efforts.

Active Listening means understanding what is behind the words without judging. This includes number one hearing, number two understanding, number three evaluating and number four reacting. Most of us skip from one to four, Hearing to Reacting.

We need to listen for the content or facts and circumstances and the emotion or the meaning and significance.

Also, what’s the non-verbal communication? The person’s posture, attitude, tone of voice, inflection and facial expression.

Remember to listen with multiple senses including the ears. Listen for the words, breathing, pace, expression, is their voice soft or hard edged, tentative or enraged?

The eyes. Look for gestures, body languages, clenched jaw, redness, sweat, eye-contact

The Intuition. What are the impressions, images, instincts, shifts of energy, mood and emotion

The six-factors that block listening are:

Factor number one, Feeling that a decision must be made about what is presented. Unlike consulting and even mentoring, coaching isn’t primarily about advice-giving. It is certainly a skill one can and should employ, but often we tend to jump into action without allowing the time and space for the other person to not only express their thoughts and feelings, but really understand them, own them, and fully comprehend their impact. Deepening the learning must come before forwarding the action. And in a coaching culture, once action happens, more learning will take place.

Factor number two, Evaluating what is presented, judging

Factor number three, Being hurried and listening on the run

Factor number four, Hearing only what you want to hear

Number five, Interrupting because you have something to say

And the last factor, number six, Seeing the other person as different from yourself. Their group, culture, race, or philosophy.

Instructor:

Stacey Zackin

If Stacey were a Super Hero, she'd be The Status Quo Buster. With 15+ years of experience in human behavior, management, and entertainment, Stacey merges psychology, strategy, and imagination to...

Stacey's Full Bio

Module 1 0/6

The Value of Coaching

Course Introduction

What is Coaching

What is Coaching - History

What is Coaching - Future

How is Coaching Different from What HR Executives Do Now

How will Coaching Make Your Job Easier and Your Managers More Effective?

Module 2 0/4

SWOT Analysis

SWOT Analysis Introduction

Strengths

Weaknesses and Threats

Opportunities

Module 3 0/4

Coaching Structure

Co-Active Coaching Model

Co-Active Coaching Model 3 Principles

Co-Active Coaching Model 4 Cornerstones

Co-Active Coaching Model 5 Contexts

Module 4 0/4

Employee Psychology

Employee Psychology Introduction

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs & Employee Motivators

Goal Setting

Cycle of Change

Module 5 0/4

Coaching Skills

36 Coaching Skills - Accountability to Visioning

Effective Communications

Four Steps to Active Listening

Feedback

Module 6 0/6

Interview and Conclusion

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