May 2008 Edition - agosci

ccommunicationo m m u n i c a t i o nppartnersa r t n e r sListening Skillsby Joel Barraudjoelbarraud@virtual.net.auListening skills are the key to effective communication.You can’t relate to people properly unless you are willingto tune into their views and learn from them.The only way we grow and mature as human beings isby interacting and conversing with other people. I know myselfthat it’s very easy to forget this and become immersed in yourown world.We start developing our listening skills from the moment weare born. We then spend a lifetime attempting to master them(I must admit that I have long way to go).Some people in positions of power such as politicians never getthem right. Question time in parliament is a perfect example ofbad listening skills.Unfortunately it is not good enough to have two ears that work.Good listening skills require a great deal of patience on thepart of both the listener and the communicator.Very often messages are misinterpreted because the listenerand the person relaying the message don’t have a good rapport.People with communication difficulties such as people withC.P., like myself, can often encounter this problem. In myexperience the best way to overcome this problem is for thelistener to take time to tune into the person’s speech patternand for the speaker to remain calm.I’ve found myself in lots communication breakdown saturations.For example, when I’m picked up by a taxi driver who doesn’tknow me quite often when I give them directions I get thefeeling that they are not trained to listen to people with C.P.Perhaps this is a good indication that maxi taxi drivers mayneed more training in communicating with people who havespeech problems.I remember another time when I rang up a disability service andI asked to speak to Stan and they thought I said Sandra. Howanyone could mistake Stan for a woman is beyond me.Listening skills play a vital role in every aspect of our lives.Remember to use them.15