Poor listening skills result in ineffective communication, which will usually have an adverse impact on the productivity of the individual, the team and the organization. Here you can find about ten barriers to effective listening and get tips for dealing with them.
<!-- INFOLINKS_OFF --> <!-- INFOLINKS_ON -->Effective communication is a valuable skill in the workplace, and listening properly is the most important part of effective communication.
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Poor listening skills definitely make a huge, negative impact on team morale and productivity. This situation usually results in conflicts and misunderstandings among team members, and it creates a negative environment.
Fortunately, listening skills can be learned. The first step is to identify the barriers to listening. The second step is to consciously implement the tips provided here to overcome those barriers.
Good conversational skills are an asset, and a person with these skills are more likely to achieve professional success. However, talking more than necessary is a barrier to effective communication. People hesitate to interact with a person who talks excessively without listening to them. They may also get bored, and excessive talking may be perceived as aggression.
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Try these tips to overcome this habit:
Prejudice is a preconceived opinion of feeling, which is usually irrational. Prejudice is very dangerous and has the potential to bring animosity into the team and to break team spirit. The reason for a prejudice may be the speaker's race, religion, age or appearance. A prejudiced person will not make any effort to listen and understand.
Overcoming prejudice while listening:
The four main types of distractions are physical, mental, auditory and visual. Here's how to avoid this common barrier:
Everybody has their own personal beliefs and value systems, and it's natural to want to apply them to others around us. Learn to appreciate that others don't have to share your beliefs. In fact, their unique perspectives may shine light on problems and issues that you haven't been able to deal with before!
The inability to hear correctly is one of the many reasons for misunderstanding what a speaker is trying to communicate. You may think that it's impolite to ask the speaker to clarify his words or intentions, but that's not the case at all. Most people will appreciate the fact that you are making a focused effort to really understand what they are trying to say.
Interrupting a conversation with improper body language or inappropriate words will have a negative impact in effective communication. Here's some tips to help you avoid this barrier to effective listening:
The person who is faking attention is just "hearing" but not "listening." There may be some eye contact and the person may even be nodding, but the mind is elsewhere. The person may be thinking about what to have for lunch or what to wear for the party that evening. Faking attention is a habit for some people, but it conveys lack of respect and dishonesty.
Try these tips:
Emotions erect barriers to effective communication. A listener's senses are not likely to be functioning at their optimum level when he or she is angry. Likewise, it is not possible to understand or appreciate what the speaker is saying if the listener is excessively sad.
Tip: It is better to avoid conversations when you are angry or excessively sad.
Noise is any unwanted sound. It is a great impediment to clear communication. It is impossible to listen in a noisy environment ' it becomes a frustrating experience for both the speaker and the listener.
Fear is a great barrier to listening. People who are afraid during a conversation are not likely to listen. They become defensive and tend to argue.
Tips to overcome fear:
Great leaders are good listeners. Effective listening is a valuable skill that helps team members achieve their goals efficiently and improves productivity. This skill is necessary to stay competitive in the current global scenario. Implementing the above mentioned tips will definitely help in improving listening skills. It is possible with self examination and self discipline.
"Listening Effectively," Wright State University,
Webb, Michael, "Eight Barriers to Effective Listening,"
