Dolly Osoio Blog #1

The sentence that I picked is from the reading, “Between Speech and Silence: Reflections on Accountability”, by Ann Russo. “Active listening implies an openness to a more collective process, on in which the most privileged are not at the center, and on in which our ideas and ourselves are open to modification, change and transformation.”

In class, we spoke about active listening and I really began to think about how it works, where I have seen it myself. When a person is actively listening then they are listening with all of the senses, as well as giving the person who is talking their full attention. I think I am drawn to this concept so much because it pops up in my everyday life.

I work full-time at a bank and the day after class I had a meeting with my boss. I found it interesting that he brought up active listening and how it will help our clients. As a banker, it is my job to listen to my clients to find specific needs that they have and try and see where I can help them. Listening to my clients and understanding their specific needs is important because I can only offer them advice based on the knowledge I get. If I do not listen, or if I am distracted I can miss signs and a client can walk out the door and feel as if I did not care.

Another thing my boss had mentioned was that if we are active listeners that people are more willing to tell us more, and we are able to uncover hidden needs. I also believe that this all can lead to trust, and that is very important in the work that I am in. Dealing with people’s financials is never an easy job, and having the trust is key. That is of course just one way that active listening is apparent in my life.

I found a great article from The New York Times and it had talked about how hearing is an art form and how we should take more time to actually listen. One thing that really stood out to me was this, “But when you actually pay attention to something you’re listening to, whether it is your favorite song or the cat meowing at dinnertime, a separate “top-down” a pathway comes into play.” This is important because it let you focus almost exclusively on what you are hearing and lets you separate what is important versus what is not really important in the moment.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/11/opinion/sunday/why-listening-is-so-much-more-than-hearing.html

 Active listening is important because often time’s people may feel that their words are irrelevant because others are not really listening or paying full attention. When someone speaks it’s important to pay attention because what they have to say could be very important, and even if it is not we should respect that someone is taking time to talk and show them our full attention.