Live It And Listen
by
Robin Wheeler
Whether
you’re an entrepreneur, manager or leader of any kind,
your ability to bring about purposeful, beneficial change is rooted in
two
things.
First, it is proportional to the degree to which you live what you say.
And second, it hinges on your ability to listen.
If you walk your
talk and personify your vision,
you will have integrity, which is the foundation of personal and
business power. It is the source of limitless inspiration, as well as
legitimacy and respect in the eyes of others. Living something
is also the best, if not the only, way to learn it.
Then,
if you don’t find yourself championing it already,
make a concerted effort to listen. Listen to yourself, what you
perceive,
need and want. Listen to your customers and let them guide your
business.
Listen to your people, who will tell you what they need, want and have
to offer,
and what can be done to strengthen business. And listen to the world
by looking at trends, patterns and signs.
To
develop the powerful, influential and gracious ability of listening,
practice the following three components of it:
Perceive
Pay
attention and observe everything your senses and intuition tell you.
Become a professional perceiver. Know yourself and use this
awareness to understand others. Get into people’s shoes and
see the world from their point of view.
As
you listen, reflect back to people the gist of what
you have picked up from them to show that you have heard and
confirm that you have done so accurately. By doing this you will
encourage people to tell you more, and help them
solve their own problems.
Then,
act on what you hear. Not doing so can be more
problematic than not listening in the first place. Take note with
proactive,
progressive change as your intent, and then make informed,
proactive, progressive change your deed.
Listening has
untold business value. By doing it attentively and responsively,
and by being a living example of your business vision and values,
you will achieve more than you will believe.
