One Moment Changes Everything

We live in a crazy world.

We fill every waking moment with some kind of stimuli – bright colors, loud sounds and lots of activity in this 24/7 world. Between ambient noise, visual noise and the constant barrage of more and more information, we can easily become distracted listeners.

In many cases, we get caught up in thinking about what we want to say—for whatever reason—that we often misread a conversation or situation. Thus the kernel of misunderstanding is born.

What you have to say is important.

But so is what your conversation partner has to say.

When I am training executives to be more effective in media interviews, I spend a great deal of time discussing and practicing listening skills. They are as important as bridging, flagging and other conversational tools.

Taking time to listen is as important as speaking and presenting. More often than not, we tend to passively listen. You know what I mean. How many times have you sat down with a friend or colleague to discuss something and they pick up their cell phone? We are a nation of distracted listeners.

• Distracted by our cell phones and our computers
• Worried about what’s for lunch or the fight we had at home
• Our distractions seem endless.

You could say we are distracted by our own thoughts.