One of the things I had to do as a journalist was to be a great listener. For those who wish to enter the profession, the art of active listening is also essential. Unfortunately, due to language barriers, I am almost like a deaf man now.
Because my husband’s English is so good that as long as he stands by my side, I start to tune out. As a result, I often sit quietly for a long time without moving but get nothing information. Once, I attended a parent's meeting of my daughter. Because my husband was sitting next to me, I continued distracted until the end of the meeting, only to know that my daughter was doing well at school.
As I was going through some information last weekend, I came across a paper on few steps to effective listening.
Maintain good eye contact - while not staring.
Make sure that you are fully paying attention, not just hearing the words, but understanding them and their context.
Put your focus on the speaker, make sure that you give them your full attention. Don't get distracted by your phone or any other attention-stealing objects!
Don't try to think about what you are going to say while the other person is talking, stay fully engaged in what they are saying.
