Often the concept of active listening is thrown around a lot because we recognize that listening is important.

However, true listening goes beyond active listening to empathetic listening. Also the differences may seem small, in fact listening from the place of empathy shifts the exchange of communication from speaker and listener to connection and understanding.

In this episode, we blast through what is known about active listening, and go into detail about how to become a more empathetic listener, as listed below.

If you would like to know more about how to become a more empathetic listener, send me a DM on LinkedIn:

www.linkedin.com/in/sarahkhan-org/

Forever grateful,

The Depressed Mom Boss

To become an empathetic listener, you will need the following.

1. Know your intention. The intention is not to listen but to connect.

2. You need to stop multitasking and focus on the one thing– the speaker.

3. Pay attention to body language. Empathetic listening is a whole body experience which can actually prove intention.

4. Be non-judgmental. There is no place for outcomes, assessments or evaluations with empathetic listening. Just create the space for the speaker to share.

5. Be patient because empathy and patience are in the exact same sphere, so to be an empathetic listener, you need to be a patient person that is fully present.

6. Honour the awkward silence. Tolerate it because silence is trust.

7. Stop paraphrasing because it usually isn’t for the benefit of the speaker, but for our own benefit for US to process the information.

8. Don’t make it about you. Empathetic listening isn’t about you. It’s about them.