Guides to Effective Listening

Here are some practical suggestions for effective listening which, if followed, can appreciably increase the effectiveness of this communicative skill.

Realize that listening is hard work. It is characterized by faster heart action, quicker blood circula­tion, and a small rise in body temperature. Researchers have found that the higher we climb on the organizational ladder, the more difficult listening becomes. In day­-to-day conversations, show the communicator you are interested by looking and acting like you are.

Prepare to listen. To receive the message clearly, the receiver must have the correct mental attitude. In your daily communications, establish a permissive environment for each communicator.

Recognize your own biases. Learn what your biases are and channel them properly. You can then keep them from interfering with the message.

Resist distractions. Good listeners adjust quickly to any kind of abnor­mal situation; poor listeners tolerate bad conditions and, in some in­stances, may create distractions themselves. Take a clue from good listeners.

Keep an open mind. A good listener doesn’t feel threatened or in­sulted, or need to resist messages that contradict his beliefs, attitudes, ideas, or personal values. Try to identify and rationalize the words or phrases most upsetting to your emo­tions.

Find an area of interest. Good listeners are interested and atten­tive. They find ways to make the message relevant to themselves and/or their jobs. Make your listening efficient by asking yourself: "What is he saying that I can use?  Does he have any worthwhile ideas?  Is he conveying any workable ap­proaches or solutions? " G. K. Chesterton once said, "There is no such thing as an uninteresting sub­ject; there are only uninteresting people."

Show some empathy. If we show some empathy, we create a climate that encourages others to communicate honestly and openly. Therefore, try to see the com­municator's point of view.

Hold your fire. Be patient. Don't interrupt. Don't become over-stimu­lated, too excited, or excited too soon, by what the speaker says. Be sure you understand what the speaker means; that is, withhold your evaluation until your com­prehension is complete. Mentally arguing with a communicator is one of the principal reasons so little listening takes place in some discus­sions. Don't argue. If you win, you lose.

Listen critically and delay judg­ment. Good listeners delay making a judgment about the communicator's personality, the principal  points of the message, and the  response. Ask questions and listen critically to the answers. Then, at  the appropriate time, judgment can be passed in an enlightened manner.

Judge content, not delivery. We listen with our own experience. We  do not understand everything we hear. It is not fair to hold the communicator responsible if we can't  decode his message. One way to  raise the level of our understanding is to recognize and assume our own  responsibility.

Exercise your mind. Good listeners develop an appetite for hearing a variety of presentations -presentations difficult enough to challenge their mental  capacities. Try it.

Capitalize on thought-speed. Most of us think at about four times faster than the communicator  speaks. It is almost impossible to slow down our thinking speed. What do you do with the excess  thinking time while someone is speaking? The good listener uses  thought-speed to advantage by applying spare thinking time to what is  being said. Your greatest handicap may be not capitalizing on thought-speed. Through listening training, it can be converted into your greatest  asset.

F. S. Perls, author of Gestalt Theory Verbation, said, ". . . Don’t listen to the words, just listen to what the voice tells you, what the movements tell you, what the posture tells you, what the image tells you."

Barriers to Effective Listening

There are several barriers to effective listening. According to Tortoriello, some of these barriers are as follows:

•  Recognizing that a personal risk is involved. Our thoughts and ideas might be changed in some way. Any change is threatening.initially;

•  Listening for only those things that are relevant to our own goals and objectives;

•  Listening for only those things that serve to satisfy our own needs;

•  Casting aside those things that don't conform to our own models of the world; and

•  Filtering the thoughts and ideas of the sender according to our frame of reference attitudes, beliefs, expectations, and relationship to the sender of the message.

Have you raised these barriers?  Is the message coming directly to you without passing through some fine filters you have placed in the com­munications loop?

Limit Your Own Talking

This guide covering approaches to good listening would not be com­plete unless something was said about limiting our own talking while playing the role of receiver.          

You cannot be an effective listener if you are too busy talking. Frank Tyget put it this way, "You can only improve on saying nothing by saying nothing often."

Following receipt of each oral communication, there is time for a response. As the receiver of the message, don't monopolize the con­versation. Give the communicator an opportunity to respond to your comments. As the source of the message he should be given a chance to have the last word. If you give him that opportunity, he will feel important and believe he has com­municated effectively. You, as the receiver, may feel justly that you have played your role as receiver well. Then, the communication can be considered truly effective.

Once you have Determined what type of business you want to Begin and The investment requirements, you are prepared to select a
location. The number of aggressive companies already in the area should influence your choice of location. Some regions are
bombarded with support stations or certain types of restaurants. Check on the number of your kind of business in Census figures,
the yellow pages, or by personally checking out the location.

Factors Aside from the Possible market, availability of Workers And number of aggressive companies have to be considered in
choosing a location. For example, how adequate are utilities - sewer, water, electricity, gas? Parking facilities? Police and fire
protection? What about housing and environmental factors like schools, cultural and community actions for employees? What's the
average cost of the location in taxes and rents? Assess on zoning regulations. Assess the business of the local business-people,
the aggressiveness of civic associations. In summary, what is the town spirit? Such factors should provide you a clue to the city
or town's future.

Chambers of Commerce and nearby universities usually have made or Are knowledgeable about local polls that can provide answers to
those questions and the many other questions which will occur to you.

Next you must decide in what part of city to locate. If the town is Very little and you're establishing retail or service
business, there'll probably be little choice. Only one shopping area is present. Cities have outlying shopping facilities in
addition to the central dining area, and stores spring up along main thoroughfares and local streets.

Consider the shopping center. It is different from different locations. The shopping centre building is pre-planned as a
merchandising unit. The website has been intentionally selected by a programmer. On-site parking is a frequent feature. Clients
may drive , park and do their buying in comparative speed and safety. Some facilities provide weather protection. Such
conveniences make the shopping center an advantageous site.

Additionally, there are some limitations you ought to know about. As a tenant, You become a part of a retailer team and has to pay
your pro rata share of the budget. You must keep store hourslight your windows, and place your signals based on established rules.
Many communities have restrictions on evidence and the center management may have additional limitations. Moreover, if you're
thinking about a shopping center for your first store you may have an extra issue. Developers and owners of shopping centers start
looking for successful retailers.

The type and variety of merchandise that you take helps determine the Kind of purchasing place you choose. For instance, clothing
shops, jewelry stores and department stores are more likely to be successful in buying districts. On the flip side, grocery
stores, drug stores, filling stations, and bakeries do better on principal thoroughfares and local streets outside the shopping
districts. Some sorts of shops customarily pay a very low rent per square foot, while others cover a high rent. In the"low"
category are furniture, grocery stores and hardware stores. At the"high" are cigar, drug, women's furnishings, and department
stores. There is no hard and fast rule, but it's helpful to see in what kind of place a shop like yours most often seems to
flourish.

After determining an area ideal for your type of business, Obtain as many details as you can about it. Examine the competition.
How many similar businesses can be found nearby? What exactly does their sales volume appear to be? If you're establishing a store
or service transaction, how far is it that people come to trade in the area? Are the visitors patterns positive? If the majority
of your customers will probably be local populations, study the population trends of the area. Is population increasing,
stationary or declining? Are the folks native-born, blended or mostly foreign? Are new ethnic groups coming in? Are they mostly
laborers, clerks, executives or retired persons? Are they all ages or principally retired, middle aged, or young? Judge purchasing
power by checking average home rental, typical real estate taxation, number of phones, number of cars and, if the amount is
available, per capita income. Larger shopping facilities have this type of information out there, and will make it available to
serious prospective tenants.

Zoning ordinances, parking availability, transport facilities And natural barriers - such as bridges and hills - are important
considerations in locating any sorts of business. Possible sources for this information are Chambers of Commerce, trade
associations, real estate companies, local newspapers, banks, city officials, neighborhood retailers and private observation. If
the Bureau of the Census has developed census tract information to the specific area where you are interested you'll find this
especially valuable. A census tract is a small, permanently recognized, geographical area within a big city and its environs. The
Census Bureau provides population and housing characteristics for every tumor. This information could be valuable in measuring
your market or service potential.

Deciding upon the actual site in a area may well be accepting what you May get. Not too many plants or buildings will be suitable
and in precisely the exact same time, available. Should you have a choice, be sure to consider the possibilities carefully.

For a production plant, think about the condition and suitability Of the construction, transportation, parking facilities, and
also the sort of lease. For A shop or service establishment, check out the nearest competition, traffic Flow, parking amenities,
street location, physical aspects of the building, Type of lease and price, and the speed, price and quality of transportation.
Also Investigate the history of the website. Find answers to these questions as: Has the Building remained vacant for any length
of time? Why? Have various types of Stores occupied it for brief periods? It may have proved unprofitable for them. Websites where
many enterprises have failed ought to be avoided. Vacant buildings Don't bring traffic and are generally considered poor
neighbors, therefore check on nearby unoccupied buildings.

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