subject: Techniques on How to Become An Active Listener [print this page] Techniques on How to Become An Active Listener
To be able to communicate properly and to make communication effective, one should posses good listening skills. One of the important aspects of communication is active listening. Failure to listen properly shows lack of interest and disrespect to the person you are talking to or to the speaker. A person who knows how to overcome the barriers of effective listening is a person who most likely becomes a sincere individual. Learning how to actively listen allows you to listen properly and know the problem or the topic you are discussing about clearly. In this article, you will find the basic aspects of active listening and basic techniques on how to become a good listener.
Learning to be attentive is one of the important aspects in becoming a good listener. In order to become attentive, pay close attention to what the person you are talking to or the speaker is saying and do not just allow the words to drift in the air. Listen and do not just appear to be listening, for there is a big difference between the two. To become attentive, keep your body relaxed and listen to the speaker. Do not let yourself get distracted by the noise on the surrounding or to the dialogues in thoughts in your mind.
After learning to become attentive, practice active participation, this one of the essential aspects of communication. Active participation can be shown by giving feedback. Active participation can be express through maintaining eye contact and use of positive body language like nodding and facial expressions. Asking questions is also a way of active participation. You can ask questions if you did not understand what the speaker was talking about but see to it that you ask your questions in the right time in order for you to not interrupt with the speaker.
Paraphrasing is another technique that one ought to learn for effective listening. Paraphrasing can be done by summarizing or recapping what the speaker said in a few words. In this manner you will be able to show to the person that you are indeed listening to him and at the same time testing if you have completely understood him.
A person's listening skills can also be improved by active listening activities. These activities can also be used by teachers during the class to check and evaluate the learning of the students. This can be done by asking questions to the students about the topic of the lesson anytime during the class.
The above mentioned are just some tips on how to improve your listening skills and become an active listener.
