TRAITS OF A GOOD LISTENER

TRAITS/CHARACTERISTICS/QUALITIES OF A GOOD LISTENER

'Traits' means 'qualities. A listener must have certain qualities so that he can understand the sounds and words correctly. Effective listening results in good responses, better understanding, and healthy relationships. 

A good listener must have the following qualities-

1. Focused-'Being focused means understanding the central point of something.' 

A listener is focused when listening to the speaker. He maintains good eye contact to show his focus. This helps him to understand speech better. He does not care much about 'how to react' rather he should listen, process, and understand. He listens to comprehend, not respond. 

2. Attentive

Being attentive means 'listening or watching carefully'. A listener is engaged in the current moment instead of remembering the past or thinking about the next. The listener avoids all distractions, including phones and other people. He remains active in writing queries or taking notes.

3. Without Expectation

A good listener listens without any expectations. He is not attached to a certain outcome. He allows the speaker to speak freely. Any expectation by the listener forces the conversation in the listener's desired direction. He accepts the conversation as it goes naturally. 

4. Not be an attention seeker

'Attention seeker means a person who tries to get attention, typically in an inappropriate (wrong) manner.'

A good listener helps the speaker whenever he sticks somewhere. But he doesn’t disturb the speaker unnecessarily. He does not take attention away from the speaker.

5. Ready to Respond

A good listener is ready to respond to the speaker either through positive body language or through words. Both ways boost the energy of the speaker. Remember, the listener responds responsibly not with a critical (and often wrong or harsh) mind. A listener's positive response prepares a smooth environment for building good relations with the speaker.

6. Listen more and speak less

A good listener must not show his knowledge while listening. Instead, he focuses on speech and responds when necessary.  He doesn’t aim to dominate the conversation but rather tries to listen even more than he listens.

7. Use positive body gestures

A listener must show a positive response even through his body language. This may include a smile, posture, facial expression, nodding, etc. It encourages the speaker to continue. One of the best ways to show attentive listening is to keep eye contact with the speaker. These nonverbal cues have an especially important place in listening. 

8. Don’t interrupt

It’s frustrating for a speaker to speak and constantly get interrupted by listeners. A listener does not interrupt the speaker in the middle. Unnecessary interruption becomes the reason for losing an argument or train of thought or even getting the whole point derailed and forgotten. A good listener understands this fury and simply listens until the speaker completes his point. If he is confused, he asks after the speaker has made his point. 

9. Ask follow-up questions

An important part of listening is engagement with the speaker. A listener asks follow-up questions after the speech of the speaker. A good listener encourages the speaker by asking relevant questions. He tries to get more details. He clears his doubts by asking questions.

10. Listen to learn

A good listener believes in learning something new from each speech. He actively listens to understand new information and asks the speaker to elaborate. He remains interested and invests time in each meeting.

11. Patient

A good listener does not make haste to judge the speaker and speech. He waits until the speaker finishes his point of view. Patience makes a person a good listener. 

12. Curious to know

Curious means 'finding more about anything'. A good listener is genuinely curious and wants to find out more from the speech. He wants answers, and he is excited about how the speaker will handle his queries.

13. Summarize after listening

A good listener prepares a summary of the speech. This helps highlight important moments and any outstanding issues. It helps a listener for future references related to this topic.