COMM 160-1070
“In general, hearing is a physiological experience in which sound waves vibrate our eardrums. We usually ignore these sounds or take them for granted. We therefore take hearing to be a passive act, contrasted with the more active of listening. In this way, listening is a practice that requires our active attention and focus.”
-Chris MrRae
There is incredible power in knowing the difference between hearing and listening, and using this knowledge as a tool to strengthen the connections in your personal and professional lives. Listening is a mindful and active process and requires engagement from both the sender and the receiver.
In this age, we are flooded with distraction. These distractions take away from our ability to be fully committed to our conversations and connections. This can be seen in the all too familiar scenario where you are telling a friend a story or experience, but they are plugged in to their phone, pseudo listening to what you are saying. They may claim that they are multitasking, and they may actually be hearing what you have to say; however, they are not listening to you, do to their lack of mindfulness and active attention.
Listening is a mindful process, meaning you have to be conscious or aware of what you are hearing. For some, the art of listening is hard to comprehend, because it is not a tangible act. As a listener, I deeply respect whoever I am speaking to, because speaking requires immense vulnerability. When you understand the power of vulnerability, you begin to expand your perception. You have to lean into the discomfort that this brings, because through it you will find connection. Connection, is why all of us humans are here. We are neurobiologically wired to crave and seek connection, which can happen when we apply the concept of mindful listening.
References
McRae, Chris. “Compassionate Critical Listening.” Communication Process and Skills.
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