Culprits Behind Poor Listening

Unprocessed note taking: Taking

verbatim notes without considering what
you are writing down
When taking notes, focus on the content of
whats being said and write down the most
important points.

Culprits Behind Poor Listening

(cont.)

Culprits Behind Poor Listening (cont.)

Nonlistening: Not paying attention;
prevents you from processing and retaining
the message
When feeling distracted, calm your mind and
redirect your energy to listening.

Culprits Behind Poor Listening (cont.)

Culprits Behind Poor Listening (cont.)

Interruptive listening: One person
consistently interrupts another
Interruptive audience members can derail the
speaker.
Interruptive speakers can miss certain aspects
of a question or comment.
Be sure not to interrupt when listening to
others.

Culprits Behind Poor Listening

(cont.)

Culprits Behind Poor Listening (cont.)

Agenda-driven listening: Focusing so
much on what comes next in the speech
you pay little attention to audience
members
Annoys audience members and damages
credibility
Make sure you are analyzing your audience to
confirm they are keeping up with and
understanding your speech.

Culprits Behind Poor Listening (cont.)

Culprits Behind Poor Listening (cont.)

Argumentative listening: Listening only
enough to fuel your own arguments; also
known as selective listening
May occur when you disagree with an
interviewees opinions or ideas
Remind yourself to listen first before making
judgments.
Try to keep an open mind.

Culprits Behind Poor Listening (cont.)

Nervous listening: Feeling compelled to
talk through silences
Makes it difficult to gather and interpret
information
Can damage your ability to gather and interpret
information you need to deliver an effective
speech
Collect yourself and wait a few beats before
continuing.

Becoming a Better Listener

Filter out distractions.
External noise
Environmental noise
Visual distractions

Internal noise
Thoughts that make it hard for you to concentrate

Avoid nonlistening activities and focus on the

person speaking.

Becoming a Better Listener (cont.)

Focus on the speaker.
Keep your mind on what the speaker is saying,
not on what he or she may say next.
Ask yourself:

What does this statement mean?

Do I agree or disagree with it?
Do I have questions about it?
How might other people think or feel about it?

Becoming a Better Listener (cont.)

Show that you are listening.
Nonverbal cues that indicate listening:
Alert posture
Head nodding
Eye contact

Verbal cues that indicate listening:

Asking questions
Paraphrasing audience members question

Becoming a Better Listener (cont.)

Maximizing Your Audiences Listening

Audience
surveillance
Pay attention
to an
audiences
nonverbal and
verbal
responses
while you give
a speech.

Maximizing Your Audiences Listening

(cont.)
Anticipate ineffective listening before your
speech.
Consider your listeners attention and energy
levels.
Assess your audiences knowledge and
abilities.
Front- and back-load your main message.
Use presentation aids strategically.

Maximizing Your Audiences Listening

(cont.)
Encourage active listening during your
speech.
Tailor your delivery by adjusting your voice,
volume, fluency, projection, rate, and timing.
Acknowledge the viewpoints of argumentative
listeners.
Pause for questions to help re-engage defeated
listeners.
Engage superficial listeners by making eye
contact or asking questions.

Maximizing Your Audiences Listening

(cont.)

Listening When You Are in the Audience

Providing a speech critique can help you and the
speaker.
Guidelines:
Take notes.
Identify main points.
Consider the speechs objectives and provide constructive
criticism.
Support your feedback with examples.
Be ethical.