Tips for Effective Listening
To succeed in their work, internal auditors should be able to write, speak and listen effectively. Of these three skills, effective listening may be the most crucial because auditors are required to do so often. Unfortunately, listening also be the most difficult skill to master.
1. Focus on what others say. When you hear someone, you often find yourself thinking about a job or task you are about to run or an important family matter? In the midst of a conversation, do you sometimes realize that you have not heard a word from the other person said? Most people speak at a rate of 175 to 200 words per minute. However, research suggests they are quite capable of listening and word processing at a rate of 600 to 1,000 words per minute. Today an internal auditor working very fast and complex, and because the brain does not use its full capacity when you hear, the mind of an auditor may lead to think of other questions or explanations instead of hearing the message in question. This unused brainpower can be a barrier to effective listening, making the auditor to lose or misinterpret what others say. It is important that internal auditors to focus actively on what others say that effective communication can occur.
2. SEND the nonverbal message is being heard. When someone is talking, do maintain eye contact with this person? You see that the speaker is heard nod? Does your body language conveys the message that you are listening to? What are you leaning forward and not use his hands to play with things? Most communication experts agree that nonverbal cues can be three times more powerful than verbal messages. Effective communication becomes difficult time to send a nonverbal message that you are not really listening.
3. AVOID preliminary tests. When you hear, is usually made snap judgments about what the speaker is saying? Do You assume or guess what the speaker is going to say next? Do you sometimes discover later that he could not correctly interpret what the person was saying? Because a listener can hear a faster rate than most speakers talk, there is a tendency to evaluate too quickly. This trend is perhaps the greatest obstacle to effective listening. It is especially important to avoid early assessments when listening to a person with whom you disagree. When listeners start to disagree with the message from a sender, which tend to misinterpret and distort the remaining information so that their meaning is consistent with their own beliefs.
4. Avoid getting defensive. Do you take what someone says something personal when it is telling you it is not intended to be personal? Did you ever get angry at someone else says? Listen carefully, does not mean you always agree with the point of the other part of the eye, but it does mean he’ll try to hear what the other person is saying without being too defensive. Too much time to explain the preparation and defense of its decision or position is a sure sign that you are not listening. This is because their role has changed from one to listen to a paper to convince others that they are wrong. After listening to position or suggestion with which you disagree, just respond with something like: “I understand your point. I just do not agree to this.” Effective listeners can listen calmly to another person, even if that person is giving an unfair criticism.
5. Paraphrasing practice. Paraphrasing is the art of putting in your own words what you thought you heard and said back to the sender. For example, a subordinate might say: “You have often been unfair to me on my performance evaluation You have rated me lower than me Jim can do the job better than him, and I’ve been here longer …” One answer could be paraphrased: “I can see you’re upset about your score You think it’s unfair that I would call you and yo ..” To paraphrase a great technique to improve their listening and problem solving skills. First, we must listen carefully if they are to accurately paraphrase what you heard. Second, to paraphrase the answer to clarify that the sender that the message was received correctly and the encourage the sender to extend what he or she is trying to communicate.
6. Listen (and watch) feelings. When listening, do you concentrate only on the words spoken, or even focus on the manner in which claims to be? The way in which a speaker stands, tone of voice and inflection that he or she is using, and what you are doing with their hands are part of the message being sent. A person who raises his voice is likely to be angry or frustrated. A person looking down while talking is probably either embarrassed or shy. Interruptions can suggest fear or lack of confidence. People who make eye contact and lean forward is likely to exhibit confidence. Arguments may reflect the concern. Silence can be an inappropriate sign of aggression and should be understood as punishment.
7. QUESTIONS. Do you often ask questions when listening to a message? Are you trying to clarify what a person said to you? Ensure that effective listeners have heard correctly the message being sent. Ask questions to clarify points or obtain additional information. Open questions are the best. Require the speaker to convey more information. Form your questions in a way that makes clear that it has not drawn any conclusions. This will ensure that the sender of the message that is only interested in obtaining more and better information. And the information rather than as a listener would be better able to respond to communications from the sender
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