As we launch into the fourth month of 2024, it is a good time to assess our progress. Are you on pace to achieve your business goals and objectives? What have you learned since the beginning of the year that has either distracted you or enabled you to move forward or fall further behind?
Part of your leadership efforts needs to be staying in tune with what is or is not happening in your business, your industry, your neighborhood, and amongst your team members. One way to accomplish this is to have ongoing interactions with various people in all the areas that can influence your business’s success. These relationships should not be casual but focused and done with good intentions for all parties.
When these conversations occur, you need to apply yourself fully to the words, verbs, and vocabulary used. This is an active participation process, not a passive interaction. Your auditory skills and attention are the key to what and how you take in information. They are the difference between just listening and actually hearing what is being communicated.
I have been a third party in some conversations and observed the transfer of language between the parties. It is very interesting to hear that one party actually has to reference that they are listening or that the other party has referenced that they heard someone. These are giveaways that someone is not fully paying attention to the transfer of information.
In recent years, as technology has continued to creep into our daily activities, it is becoming increasingly apparent that people don’t actually know how to listen attentively and hear what is being spoken. The overreliance on text messages, email, and other textual transfers of thoughts and ideas is causing many to lose their ability to transfer knowledge and understanding via the verbal word. At the same time, those same individuals have a difficult time listening, hearing, and subsequently not being able to express their thoughts clearly.
The other factor that could impact the ability to transfer insights is that text has evolved to a more cryptic, non-formatted stream of ideas. Punctuation, grammar, and such are set aside to the rambles of spewing many thoughts together. A time when volume is sometimes greater than quality or content.
This week, as you focus on growing your business, take some time to observe your interactions with your team members. Do you see the quality of the interactions? Is the data transfer not just being passed along but actually being heard when listened to? What can be done to assist in developing a more effective listening and hearing system in your business? Just imagine the benefits if human conversation was clear and crisp. How much better could your organization grow?
Looking to grow your business more effectively and efficiently with improved communication? Give JKL Associates a call and speak with a Promise Guide about the ways to constructively influence positive improvements in business communication. Reach out to us in FL (407) 984-7246 or MI (313) 527-7945.
Journey On!
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QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS – EMAIL US AT PARTNERS@JKLASSOCIATES.COM OR CALL OUR OFFICES – MI AT (313) 527-7945 FL AT (407) 984-7246
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