Welcome to One Word Suggestion
Hosted by: Eran Thomson
This week's word is: Listening
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Show notes:
This podcast is intentionally short and sweet, so don't expect too much from the notes. We will, of course, share links and details of things discussed in individual episodes as appropriate - and that's about it.
The main thing to know is every episode of this show starts with a one-word suggestion, and there's no reason the next one couldn’t come from you.
As long as its not "dildo."
Transcript:
Have you ever been in a conversation with someone and you can tell they’re not listening, and just waiting for you to shut up so they can say what they want to say? It sucks right?
But you can’t blame them because the fact is even though we're all taught how to read, write, and speak, unless you've had some improv training, nobody teaches us how to listen.
Now, if you have had improv training then you already know it can turn you into an active listener and it can change everything. Because when it comes to being a good improviser, or actually just being a good human, being a good listener is invaluable.
In fact, you can always tell when you're talking with an improviser because as soon as you start talking, they stop talking, and start listening.
So how can you become a better listener? Other than obvious things like actually paying attention to the person in front of you and using eye contact, one trick to becoming a good listener is recognising tone.
Unless you’re working with robots, everything anyone says will have emotion behind it and should be “listened” to with the intent of understanding what that emotion is. If I were to ask you how your day went and you said “fine.” I’d know it wasn’t such a good day.
Some people also talk about listening for the “need” of a situation or scene. This means watching out for beats, rhythm, and movement. And this can be as much about finding out what is needed as what is NOT needed.
And then there's Listening for Intent - sometimes the intention of a performer is often different from the intention of the character.
For example, a character might say, “Whatever you do, don’t go in there.” but the performer is saying, “Go in there!”
Also, remember that listening is not just something you do with your ears. I read somewhere that 93% of communication is non-verbal.
Now that may or may not be true, but the way someone stands, their facial expressions, their mannerisms and the way they move all have meaning and can add context to a conversation. This is why I’m such a terrible poker player.
The main thing if you want to be a better listener is to stop planning the next thing you’re going to say, and focus attentively on the person in front of you and their verbal and non-verbal communication.
This will take you out of your head, and let them know you care about them and their ideas. And it will lead to you being a much more empathetic, approachable, and delightful person to be around.
And I think you’ll be surprised how quickly people notice the change.
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The ideas, observations, and perspectives shared here are mine alone.
I’d love to hear yours in the comments.
One Word Suggestion: Listening