Listening is essential to strong communication. We know this. And yet so many of us don’t actively work on our listening skills like we do on our verbal communication skills.

In reality, listening is an equally (if not more) important piece of the communication puzzle. When you’re an active listener and are able to effectively understand the other person, ask questions, be interested instead of interesting – you’re well on your way to a successful life and career.

In this blog post I’m going to cover exactly why listening is so important in communication, what listening is and what it is not, the distinction between being interested vs. interesting, and three practical and easy exercises you can start practicing today to elevate your listening skills.

Let’s dive in.

Why listening is so important in communication

You might be thinking, “Okay, I know listening is important, and being a strong communicator and getting my message across...

Last week, there was a theme in my conversations and workshops with various clients. That theme was in the arena of agreements, or more accurately, the lack of them.

Whether you’re feeling frustrated due to last-minute requests from co-workers, suppliers not meeting expectations, or clients who don’t follow through on their commitments, the issues can frequently be resolved by setting up agreements and managing them well.

Here’s a 6-step framework to follow so more of your expectations are met on a regular basis. As an exciting side note, these steps will work just as well in your personal life as they do in business situations.

1.   Set clear expectations

The starting point is for you to be clear about what your expectations are. For the most part, we operate with misspoken or unspoken expectations and then we wonder why we don’t get what we want.

What are your conditions of satisfaction? What has to happen for you to feel your expectations have been...

Enhancing your leadership presence is important to do at any stage of your career.

Many people think that you either have what it takes to be a great leader, or you don’t. This actually couldn’t be further from the truth. Like anything, being a great leader takes practice, determination, and an understanding that you will probably make some mistakes along the way. 

The good news is that every great leader started exactly where you are. And even if you don’t feel confident in your abilities just yet, there are steps you can take right now to get to where you want to be in your leadership journey.

In this post, we’re sharing how to enhance and develop your leadership presence in a few simple steps.

1. Develop your communication and listening skills

The first step in becoming a better leader is developing both your communication and listening skills. As I’m sure you can imagine, there are a number of ways to go about this depending on your current...