Listen With Your Heart

“It seems rather incongruous that in a society of super sophisticated communication, we often suffer from a shortage of listeners” –Erma Bombeck

In today’s world many people suffer from “agenda anxiety”, a term author, consultant, motivational speaker Nido Qubein uses for “the feeling that what we want to say to others is more important than what they might want to say to us.” So instead of truly listening to the other person, we are already formulating what we want to say in our minds.

When communication is lacking, relationships suffer. If you want to improve your relationships, practice listening from the heart and then speaking.

The authors of Managing From the Heart discuss what it means to communicate from the heart. Here are the five principles of “H-E-A-R-T” communication:

H – Hear and understand me.

E – Even if you disagree, please don’t make me wrong.

A – Acknowledge the greatness within me.

R – Remember to look for my loving intentions.

T – Tell me the truth with compassion.

Next time you’re involved in a conversation, focus on listening without giving any thought to your response.  It is only by communicating from the heart that you can make a difference.