10 ways to stay focused and hear your audience
Most people believe that when you are speaking all the focus should be on you. This is true to an extent but to go beyond mediocre and really engage with your audience it is also important to listen. Whether you’re presenting to an audience, participating in a sales call or facilitating a meeting, if you struggle with the listening ingredient, chances are you’re missing opportunities that can make you more money. In a normal day, we all listen nearly twice as much as we speak and four to five times as much as we read and write (Rivers, 1981). The challenge is to capture key points and ideas as a result of listening.
Here are 10 methods to help you stay focused and keep your listeners attention while you are their focus.
1. Make solid eye contact. This shows your listener you’re really listening. Try this trick – If your speaking to a larger crowd, pick three points. One on the right, one in the middle, and one on the left side of your audience. When you look between these points, it will give 80% of the audience the impression you are making eye contact with them.
2. Pay attention to your listener’s body language. If they’re looking at you versus away from you, most likely they’re interested in what you have to say—If their arms are crossed, they may be objecting to what you are saying. Try to involve them more or hand them something to get them to open up.
3. Pause before answering. This encourages your listener to provide you with additional information and gives you an opportunity to “think on your feet.”
4. Listen for changes in your listener’s tone of voice, inflection, or volume. If the voice has more inflection, they’re communicating a positive response to your message. If your listener’s voice increases in volume or carries a harsh tone, listen and then respond with a softer volume and tone.
5. Listen for key ideas and facts. When your listener touches on something you want to know more about, simply repeat the statement as a question.
6. Summarize and paraphrase key points periodically to guarantee you’re hearing and understanding your listener’s words. Say, “If I understand you correctly…,” or “So what I hear you saying is…”
7. Be patient and avoid interrupting, even though you may believe what your listener is saying is wrong or irrelevant. Indicate simple acceptance, not necessarily agreement, by nodding or perhaps injecting an occasional “I see.”
8. Always acknowledge your listener’s concerns, frustrations, and challenges. Without acknowledgment, they’ll continue to focus on the emotion versus the issue being discussed. Say, “I can imagine you must feel…” or “I get the impression you’re unhappy about… “.
9. Don’t get emotionally involved. Avoid expressing your own personal views, because they may influence or inhibit what your listener says. Try simply to understand their concerns first and defer evaluation until later.
10. Encourage your listener to provide additional information with phrases such as, “Tell me more” or “As I understand it, what you’re saying is….”
Speaking is an art with multiple ingredients that need to be studied and mastered. Begin by studying the communication ingredient and then make sure you master your confidence, knowledge, listening and body language ingredients.
About Michael Simpson
