Listening is a key

Listening is something we all do and something we can do more of.  Becoming a good listener is a learned practice. People can learn it. \

There is a difference between listening hearing. One is more active and requires effort, while the other is involuntary and natural. To master learning and communication, it takes both hearing and listening.

Reflect on an occasion when you had something to say, something important or vulnerable to share, and you knew you had the full attention of the other person. That level of attention, when you know the other person is really listening to you, makes you feel valued. 

Now think about a time when you had something to say, but you didn’t get that level of attention. The other person was distracted or disinterested, and you felt ignored, diminished, and inconsequential. 

A good conversation can be a learning opportunity but when we interrupt our conversational partner, we lose a valuable chance to learn. Some people are impatient and they only pretend to listen. 

When we listen, really listen to what others have to say, their insight may surprise you. When we don’t interrupt, but wait, allowing others to finish sometimes we learn that we can’t anticipate what they will share.  

No matter how good a listener we believe we are, it is possible to listen more closely. 

I know I could improve my communication skills to be a better listener.

Unsolicited Advice

People generally understand they should not tell other people how to live their lives. Somehow, though, we lose sight of this when it comes to overweight people.

Since more than 60% of women and nearly three-quarters of American men are obese or overweight that may occur quite often.

Whenever you have the urge to comment on what someone is eating, ask yourself: Did they ask?

You will save the other person grief by avoiding a conversation that is completely unnecessary.

People think they are being helpful with their comments, but they probably don’t know how harmful or unhelpful some of that unwanted advice can be.

Unsolicited advice signals to people that you have already made a certain judgment about the way they look.

If someone asks for advice that’s awesome. Go for it and give them all your knowledge. But leave everyone else alone.

Never stop learning

One of the great things about life is that there is always an opportunity to learn more. There are always things you don’t know, that other people know, that may be buried in books or articles or online courses. 

Every day, every interaction we have, every time we read something, we have the chance to gain new knowledge. 

You learn new things, figure out something that doesn’t work for you, and now you want to change that thing.

It’s so easy to fall into the rut of “I know enough” because, hey, sometimes learning can be exhausting.  

Learning can be challenging, particularly if you have a hard time accepting you might be wrong or need to change what you’re doing.

By staying humble and modest you will be more aware of the opportunities to learn, more likely to try new things and more open to hearing other people’s’ views and opinions.