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June 29, 2008 Since when did listening go out of fashion? I suspect that more than half of interpersonal disputes are the result of poor listening skills. Husbands don’t listen to what their wives say and certainly the boss does not listen to the employee………not really. Are we too busy, too preoccupied, and too self-centered to think someone else has something worthwhile we should listen to? For some years my habit was to stop at the local donut shop to purchase “one chocolate frosted cake donut and a small, black, coffee in a medium cup” before getting on the freeway to begin the journey to work. The employee at the window is hired to listen to customer’s orders and fill them quickly before the car behind begins to honk. No matter what the age of the employee, this has to be repeated at least 3 times. Too many adjectives and too little listening are going on. “Would you like cream in your coffee?” “No, that was a small, black coffee in a medium cup” “What else would you like”? “That’s all” “That’s a medium coffee?” “No, I want a small amount of coffee. Just put it in a larger size cup so I can drive with it without spilling and burning myself” “This is not a cake donut, it is a raised donut” “Oh, you wanted a cake donut?” “Yes, a chocolate frosted cake donut” The same thing goes on at the movies. Just try and order a small popcorn with butter and a small diet drink. See how many questions you have to answer to get that thought across. The employee does not listen at all the first time around. Come on now, this is not interpersonal relations; just do the job you are being paid to do! A wise man one told me that you can learn everything you need to know about a person if you just listen to what they tell you about themselves. People tell you who they are. Of course some people certainly stretch the truth to get the most out of it. For instance, since when did growing up in the east side of Columbus become growing up in the Far East? On second thought, maybe we are not trained to listen because we can’t believe what is being said anyhow. Rather like ex President Clinton claiming his answer depended upon the meaning of “is”. Can this be why I can’t get a small buttered popcorn with a small diet drink? People don’t listen because they have no faith that my words mean anything and are open to interpretation. ------------ About the author: I love writing for fun and hope to someday write for profit. I will soon be retiring from my "day job" and will have more time to spend writing. Email Jo Haran: joharan_2000@yahoo.com Comment on this article here! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com. Please link to this article rather than copying and pasting it onto your site (which would be unauthorized and illegal). |
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