In his best-selling book “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” author Stephen Covey lists Habit #5 as: “Seek first to understand, then be understood.”
The most important skill in life is communication.
Think about it.
You spend years learning how to read, write and speak, which are all forms of communication.
But what about listening?
It seems that none of us has ever been trained in how we can be better listeners.
If you’re like most people, in conversations you probably focus more on what you want to say then what is being said.
This means that though you may be hearing what the other person is saying, you are not listening to their words.
Simply put, you seek first to be understood.
The problem is that when you do this you may only hear certain parts of the conversation or worse, ignore the other person completely.
How rude, right?
Unfortunately you are probably completely unaware that you are even doing it.
This is why in order to be your absolute best, you must be an active listener and seek first to understand what the other person is saying completely.
Listen so well that you could repeat everything they said right back to them.
This is also called being a “First Time Listener.”
You will find by being a “First Time Listener” that you will become more patient and learn a lot more which will result in higher quality relationships.
So, the next time someone is speaking to you, focus intensely, be an active listener and see if you could repeat everything back to them.
So what does this have to do with getting your kid to be a “First Time Listener”?
You’ve got to lead by example first.
While you are improving your listening skills you can also help them improve theirs.
It’s really that simple, but like anything else, it will take time for both you and them to develop this amazing habit.
Questions to Ask Yourself & Your Child:
• What can you do to be a better “First Time Listener?”
• How will this help you?
Thanks for taking the time to read this post. I hope you found value in it.
Next Monday be on the lookout for our post on “One Simple Way to Be Your Best”. Not only will it be valuable for you but it will also be priceless for your children.
See you soon,
Jason Kifer, Sensei
SuperStarKarate
