It’s that time of year when many managers are making plans and agreeing targets for their teams. Whether it’s the annual appraisal process or a goal setting session, a good leader will aim to understand what their teams want and feel. That means active listening. Here are 6 tips to help you:

  1. Listen to understand, not to respond – if you are planning your answer while they are talking, you may miss what they are saying.
  2. Use open questions – How, when, where, who, what and why, to avoid simple yes and no answers. But be sparing with “”why” – it can come across as challenging.
  3. Repeat back what you’ve heard – not only to check you’ve got it right but also to make them know and feel they are being listened to.
  4. Emotions matter, especially in the current pandemic climate, so pay attention to mood – but start with facts before moving on to feelings.
  5. Give the team your time – this is crucial to building trust as a leader (it’s the “T” in our CREST model) – don’t rush these conversations.
  6. Spend twice as much time listening as talking – you have two ears and one mouth.

To sign-up for notification of new Hints & Tips for Leaders & Managers please click here.

For other blog articles click here