The Oft Unheard Skill: Listening: Seven Simple Ways to Turn Up the Volume on Leadership and Client Service.

• Author: Torrenzano, Richard
• Position: LEADERSHIP

* Listening has been a problem since mankind developed ears.

Sometimes, the results have been dire, particularly in military and risk management history.

October 25, 1854, in the Crimean War, the British Light Brigade was ordered to attack from the flanks, but muddled orders resulted in a frontal attack, wiping out half the regiment. Someone was just not listening carefully.

July 2, 1863, Confederate General Longstreet misinterpreted General Lee's orders to attack, advancing three hours too late. That listening error may have altered the battle of Gettysburg.... and the Civil War.

And lest we forget how critical listening is, on the night of April 14, 1912 the crew of the Titanic was urgently warned of ice... but listened, let us say, casually at best.

In more recent times, industry titans have been tone deaf at many of the wrong times: Borders, Blockbuster, JC Penny, Kodak, Palm, Radio Shack, Sears, Tie Rack, Toys R Us, Pan Am and many more might have fared better had they "gotten the message" clearly and had the means to process it.

Whether it be in battle, business or life, not knowing how to listen is one of our greatest challenges.

As a young corporate manager, I was privileged to be on the team that developed and advanced that program.

Think about your youth.

In school, we studied reading, writing and arithmetic. We were called on to stand and recite reading passages or answer questions. We became proficient at "sending".

Same at university, as we studied mathematics, science, music and art. Other courses focused on public speaking, speaking a foreign language, perhaps even acting. We listened at lectures and were graded on retention, but that was for a fraction of what we heard and was a small, relative indicator of our absorption level.

The pandemic has dramatically altered life and workplace skills. I cannot think of a more important time to rethink listening.

Following are seven ways to do just that.

GREAT LEADERS ARE GOOD LISTENERS.

Peter Drucker, Austrian-born American management consultant, said "Listening is not a skill; it's a discipline. Anybody can do it. All you have to do is keep your mouth shut." He went on to say, "The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn't said."

Generally, managers direct operations, financial and human capital, to accomplish objectives. Leaders inspire, influence, motivate and enable others to take a different path. In a crisis, leaders step forward and managers must step back. I...