Listening notes

Last weekend’s Listening World Summit that I attended online had some lovely little observations about the act of listening: what it is, what it’s not, how to do it, what happens when we do.

Listening: a doing, or a being?

Michael Neill, author of the Inside-Out Revolution, got things kicked off, when he pointed out that one of the reasons we can ‘struggle’ with listening, is because we see it as a skill, when really it’s just something that happens naturally.

👂🏻

Every time we ‘try’ to figure out what’s getting in the way of us communicating—to ‘improve’ our listening— that’s the very thing that’s getting in the way of a natural process!

How to spot listening

Aaron Turner expanded on this, later in the day, when he gave us a checklist of sorts, to help identify when listening is happening. We can see that when we're with another person:

• Listening is ‘being in neutral’ – you’re not attached to your own imaginings about what’s being said 🤔
• Listening is really easy! You don’t have to actually do anything 🥳
• Listening feels good – the creeping in of unease or urgency is a sign that ego’s returned, with its wants and needs, trying to get your attention and distract you from listening (“Like jumpy puppies”!) 🐶
• Listening gives you a genuine sense of what the other person is really trying to convey , beyond the mere words that they’re saying.

Listening to change the world

This last one really caught my attention. Michael (again) pointed out that listening is the only sure-fire way to cure all the world's ills, because:

“It's the one thing that nobody minds.”

Reflect on that for a moment: can you think of anyone, anywhere who would reject being listened to? As Michael said,

• It's universally accepted
• Everybody likes it
• It crosses all cultures
• It's not a problem anywhere, so it can help everywhere!

Let's all commit to relaxing back away from the mind's perceived needs this week, and being better listeners.

💟

Giles

SIGN UP FOR THE DAILY REMINDERS newsletter

Want to start your days with helpful, insightful content like this? The Daily Reminder is a quick, lighthearted email that arrives in your inbox, to help keep you grounded in reality, so that you get to ‘Think less, and live more.’

“They feel like a moment of stillness in a world of madness.” ~ Neil, UK

“One of those small things with big impact. Honestly, just sign up!” ~ Paula, UK

GET YOURS NOW

Premium 🔖 content

For Premium 🔖 Subscribers there's a deeper look at the art of listening, with extra written and audio content, in the form of an article entitled Creative Listening.

                        Read & Listen to the Article Now