Genuinely Listening To Others

Have you ever spent a day truly listening to other people as they speak to you?  Have you ever purposely listened to their tone, their emotions, or their volume?  It's not an easy task.  I'm guilty of "listening" to someone, nodding my head as he or she speaks, and saying, "Hmm" every now and then.  Yet, my mind is thinking of all the work I need to get done and wondering when the person will stop talking.

If someone calls me on the phone at home, I'm quick to play a computer game as we chat.  Again, I don't fully listen to the person and sometimes I'm embarrassed when I have to ask someone to repeat what they just said.

So, I'm learning to challenge myself to really listen to others.  And you know something?  It is an eye opener for me.  This morning as I drove through the fastfood drive-thru, I asked the gal at the window how she was doing.  She commented that she really hoped the rest of the day would get better.  At 7:00 AM, I wondered what made her day bad so early?  I saw that she was fighting back tears and I felt compelled to say, "Sorry that you're having a rough morning, but I want you to know that your smile has been a day brightener for me."  She nodded a little and said thanks as I drove away.

Later that morning, a friend called and asked what I was doing.  I was about to say that I'm super busy and I'm working on this and this and this, but instead, I told her, "I'm about to have a conversation with one of my great friends."  To which she responded to with silence.  Silence...I realized that she was calling because she needed to talk with a friend.  She wasn't calling just to waste time or to brag about something.  I didn't interrupt the silence and after a few seconds, I could hear my friend cry.  She was going through a very personal situation and needed someone to talk to.  After about 20 minutes of intense talking, she felt better about the situation and had a plan in place.  How many times have I cut a phone call short because I felt my work was more important?  How many times did someone really need to talk, and I chose not to be available?

We live in such a fast pace world.  We work long hours, we have other commitments, and we sometimes feel guilty taking the time to really listen to others and to show some care.  But it's never too late to turn it around.  Who needs to be heard by you?