Richard Branson once wrote: “To be a good leader you have to be a great listener.”
We were given two ears and one mouth for a reason. Research from Accenture shows that 96% of global professionals consider themselves to be good listeners.
It’s easy to talk about our individual passions or work. It’s much harder to listen to others. In today’s world, we’re surrounded by data, we’re busy, we’re tired, we’re preoccupied. These barriers take away our ability to listen. If we don’t listen to what our customers and prospects want, how can we solve their challenges?
I’ll never forget the time my youngest daughter called me on my ‘listening skills.’ We had question cards at the dinner table, for after-dinner discussions. One night, after a busy day, she was reading one of the questions. As she started talking, she could tell I was not listening. I had glanced down at my phone. She looked at me, got right in my face and clapped her hands as loud as she could. She said, “Daddy, you were not listening to me.” It gutted me to my core, and she was right to call me on it. It hasn’t happened again.
We’ve all had similar experiences in our work life. People are on their mobile devices during meetings. We’ve all seen the blank stares during a creative brainstorm session. Many people meet someone, and seconds later, forget their name. We need to be better.
As marketers we need to learn to be more active, engaged listeners. Listen to our customers, listen to our prospects and listen to our teams. We will build better relationships and longer-term customer engagements.
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