David Augsburger says, “Being heard is so close to being loved that for the average person, they are almost indistinguishable.”

Last week we talked about three levels of listening: internal listening, focused listening, and 360 listening. 360 listening is what occurs in David Augsburger’s quotation above. 360 listening is connecting deeply with another person. This level of listening is about letting go of the present “busy”ness and being fully present to attend to the “busi”ness of the moment.

360 listening is attending to both things and energy. It’s about getting things done and creating an environment in which to get those particular things done. It’s being fully present for your coachee and/or your team. It’s shutting down what’s going on in your head in order to concentrate on what others are offering.

360 listening requires spaciousness, where we create space to listen in the moment and where we provide space to reflect on that conversation in order to prepare for the next one.

To understand is to listen. To learn is to listen. To lead is to listen.

This is the WHAT of 360 listening…next week we will talk about the HOW of 360 listening.

Daimler, M. (June, 2016). Listening is an overlooked leadership tool. Harvard Business Review, May 2016. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2016/05/listening-is-an-overlooked-leadership-tool?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=harvardbiz#