My dad was the strong, silent type. He didn't like to chit chat. When he spoke, people listened. He was a good listener, too. The man of few words had lots of memorable expressions and the one I remember most is, "Ears open, mouth shut." When I was younger and he would say that, it made me giggle. I pictured big, floppy elephant ears attached to my head. But then as I went through school and teachers would tell the chatty students to "shut up and listen," I got the importance of ears open, mouth shut.
There are lots of expressions that convey the same meaning as my dad's words:
⁕ God gave us two ears and one mouth.
⁕ The acronym WAIT...Why Am I Talking?
⁕ Think before you speak.
⁕ "Do not speak unless you can improve upon the silence." ~ Quaker saying
Listening is such an important skill and yet people talk over one another because they need to get their point across right now. Listen. Respond rather than react. It's good manners (does that make me sound old?). It's being respectful. To listen, we need to make a conscious effort not just to hear what other people are saying, but to take it in, digest it, and understand. Not only does listening enhance your ability to understand better and make you a better communicator, it also makes the experience of speaking to you more enjoyable to other people.
No comments:
Post a Comment