Soft Skill/Competency: Listening

(Refer our High Quality Management Encyclopedia “Management Universe” at: http://management-universe.blogspot.com/)

Also read “Shyam Bhatawdekar’s Musings” at http://shyam-bhatawdekar-musings.blogspot.com/)

Refer previous sixteen posts to read the detailed explanations on competencies "Result Orientation", "Problem Solving", “Self Confidence”, “Self Development”, "Action Orientation", "Creativity", "Interpersonal Skills", "Communication Skills", "Composure or Coolness", "Decision Making",
"Integrity", "Team Work and Team Building", "Developing People", "Conflict Management", "Leadership" and "Motivation".

Explanation of the Competency "Listening"

• Considers listening as one of the important human skills and an important subset of the communication skills.
• Believes that listening strengthens the quality of communication, interpersonal relations, human relations, emotional intelligence, conflict management and team management.
• Every interaction requires one to respond and since the quality of response depends on the quality of listening, tries to improve quality of his listening constantly.
• Listens more and more within the sphere of other’s HSoftware (overall mental frame consisting of values, knowledge, paradigms and will power) rather than within the sphere of his own HSoftware. (Refer for more details the book titled "HSoftware- Shyam Bhatawdekar's effectiveness Model":http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=hsoftware&x=16&y=21)
• Thus, listens to understand the other person and not just to react, reply, control or manipulate the other person. By understanding the other person properly, can respond or act in the best possible manner.
• Does not ignore the other person by showing indifference or by pretending to listen.
• Generally respects other people and demonstrates openness and trust through his body language and spoken words.
• Encourages two way communication.
• Focuses on what the other person is saying and pays attention and tries to understand what the other person is saying.
• Tries to understand what the other person is saying by being interactive with him by giving him the feedback of his understanding.
• He tends to be empathic in his listening the others. Puts himself in other person's shoes.
• In becoming an empathic listener, listens not only with his ears but also with his eyes and with his heart.
• Listens for feeling and meaning.
• Understands that every human being needs psychological survival- one wants to be understood and appreciated by others, one wants others' affirmation and validation. By being an empathic listener, satisfies this need of other human beings.
• Then, paves way to influencing the people in right directions by diagnosing the issues and concerns of others in a better way for effective problem solving.
• Promotes a more participative style of managing by involving people.

Pitfalls to be Avoided

• May spend disproportionately more time in listening at the cost of other equally important functions.
• In order to promote participation may tend to allow people to speak out whatever they wish to even when they are at tangent and thus mismanaging the time.
• May be seen by many people as person always available to offer shoulder to cry on.
• Being listened to intently may be construed by the speakers as if what they are speaking is being accepted by the listener as correct though in fact they may be wrong.

For free tutorials on "Train the Trainers" program, refer: http://train-trainers.blogspot.com/

Soft Skill/Competency: Communication Skills

(Refer our High Quality Management Encyclopedia “Management Universe” at: http://management-universe.blogspot.com/)

(For everything you wanted to know on building leadership and management, refer Shyam Bhatawdekar’s website: http://shyam.bhatawdekar.com)

Refer older seven posts to read the detailed explanations on competencies "Result Orientation", "Problem Solving", “Self Confidence”, “Self Development”, "Action Orientation", "Creativity" and "Interpersonal skills").

 Explanation of the Competency "Communication Skills"

• Likes to communicate with others.
• Selects the right target groups or individuals for his communication.
• Can organize his ideas, thoughts and messages and structure or format them appropriately and makes sure that they match the requirements of his target groups or individuals.
• Is capable of correctly, precisely, concisely and effectively sending the desired messages or ideas to the receiver at the right pace.
• In doing so, he chooses appropriate language and style for delivery of his messages.
• Ensures that his message has reached the receiver the way he wanted it to be.
• Furthermore, he puts his best efforts in communicating with others such that it elicits the desired response from the audience on most of the occasions.
• Is good at making effective and confident presentations to an individual, small groups and large groups whether internal or external to the organization.
• Can make effective presentation even to a mixed or diverse audience with different backgrounds, interests and sophistication. Also is capable of communicating well with difficult audience.
• Can clearly explain to the audience even a more complex subject matter making it easier for them to understand.
• Encourages two way communication, feedback and sorts out questions and doubts of the receiver of communication.
• Therefore, he is an effective, active and empathetic listener.
• Employs right kind of time management while communicating.
• Makes sure that his actions are commensurate with what he communicates. 

Pitfalls to be Avoided

• May spend too much time polishing and honing his communication.
• May not like to put much of efforts in planning and delivering his communication believing that he is already good at it.
• May fall prey to excessive emphasis on presentation styles and use of sophisticated technology while giving a second degree treatment to the objectives and contents of communication.
• Actions may not necessarily be demonstrative of his communication if he believes that gift of gab is all that matters. 

Read the "Management Case Studies" from Shyam Bhatawdekar's book "Sensitive Stories of Corporate World" at: http://management-anecdotes.blogspot.com/ or http://shyam.bhatawdekar.com/

For "Management Games, Exercises, Energizers and Icebreakers", read at: http://management-games-icebreakers.blogspot.com/ or http://shyam.bhatawdekar.com/

For free tutorials on "Train the Trainers" program, refer: http://train-trainers.blogspot.com/