The Lost Art of Listening

I have come to the realization that listening is a lost art. When we ask for advice or another person’s opinion on something that we are doing, we immediately get a bad case of “interuptusitis” or we come down with a severe case of the “yeahbut” disease. The conversation usually starts like this “Can I ask your opinion, I need some help with, or How would you handle that.” Immediately as soon as the person you asked for an opinion, opens their mouth to speak, one interrupts with “yeah but, I tried that it did not work, no what I mean is, and so on.”

What is really happening is that we are so intent on what we think the other person is about to say that we stop listening and start projecting. We have the conversation already pre dialogued in our head so we don’t listen. A good friend of mine says that she doesn't give advice, and that she learned it from a quote “Don’t give advice because wise men don’t need it and fools don’t heed it.

The next time you ask for someone’s opinion, try something new. Listen and don’t speak at all. When they are finished…..Just say thank you! Give your brain, and soul time to digest the information.