listening a most important strategic leadership skill

Listening

A Most Important Strategic Leadership Skill

[An obsession with] Listening is ... the ultimate mark of Respect.Listening is ... the heart and soul of Engagement.Listening is ... the heart and soul of Kindness.Listening is ... the heart and soul of Thoughtfulness.Listening is ... the basis for true Collaboration.Listening is ... the basis for true Partnership.Listening is ... a Team Sport.Listening is ... a Developable Individual Skill.* (*Though women are far better at it than men.)Listening is ... the basis for Community.Listening is ... the bedrock of Joint Ventures that work.Listening is ... the bedrock of Joint Ventures that last.Listening is ... the core of effective Cross-functional Communication* (*Which is in turn Attribute #1 of organizational effectiveness.)Listening is ... the engine of superior EXECUTION.Listening is ... the key to making the Sale.Listening is ... the key to Keeping the Customer’s Business.Listening is ... the engine of Network development.Listening is ... the engine of Network maintenance.Listening is ... the engine of Network expansion.Listening is ... Learning.Listening is ...the sine qua non of Renewal.Listening is ...the sine qua non of Creativity.Listening is ...the sine qua non of Innovation.Listening is ... the core of taking Diverse opinions aboard.Listening is ... Strategy.Listening is ... Source #1 of “Value-added.”Listening is ... Differentiator #1.Listening is ... Profitable.* (*The “R.O.I.” from listening is higher than from any other single activity.)Listening underpins ... Commitment to EXCELLENCE

[An obsession with] Listening is ... the ultimate mark of Respect.Listening is ... the heart and soul of Engagement.Listening is ... the heart and soul of Kindness.Listening is ... the heart and soul of Thoughtfulness.Listening is ... the basis for true Collaboration.Listening is ... the basis for true Partnership.Listening is ... a Team Sport.Listening is ... a Developable Individual Skill.* (*Though women are far better at it than men.)

Listening is ... the basis for Community.Listening is ... the bedrock of Joint Ventures that work.Listening is ... the bedrock of Joint Ventures that last.Listening is ... the core of effective Cross-functional Communication* (*Which is in turn Attribute #1 of organizational effectiveness.)

[cont.]

Listening is ... the engine of superior EXECUTION.Listening is ... the key to making the Sale.Listening is ... the key to Keeping the Customer’s Business.Listening is ... “secret weapon.”Listening is ... Learning.Listening is ... Renewal.Listening is ... Creativity.Listening is ... Innovation.Listening is ... Listening is ... Strategy.Listening is ... Source #1 of “Value-added.”Listening is ... Differentiator #1.Listening is ... Profitable.* (*The “R.O.I.” from listening is higher than from any other single activity.)

Listening is … the bedrock which underpins a Commitment to EXCELLENCE

*Listening is of the

utmost … strategic importance!

*Listening is a proper …

core value !

*Listening is … trainable !

*Listening is a … profession !

This is not just an exhortation, “Hey, listen.” I’m suggesting that listening become a pre-occupation. That it be the whole-damn-organization’s trademark.

Listen!• Listening Leaders: The Ten Golden Rules To Listen, Lead & Succeed—Lyman Steil and Richard Bommelje• The Zen of Listening—Rebecca Shafir• Effective Listening Skills—Dennis Kratz and Abby Robinson Kratz• Are You Really Listening?—Paul Donoghue and Mary Siegel• Active Listening: Improve Your Ability to Listen and Lead—Michael Hoppe• Listening: The Forgotten Skill —Madelyn Burley-Allen

Listening’s corollary: the Art of Asking.

Ask!• Leading with Questions: How Leaders Find the Right Solutions by Knowing What to Ask —Michael Marquardt• Smart Questions: Learn to Ask the Right Questions for Powerful Results —Gerald Nadler and William Chandon• The Art of Asking: Ask Better Questions, Get Better Answers—Terry Fadem• How to Ask Great Questions —Karen Lee-Thorp• Change Your Questions, Change Your Life—Marilee Adams• Asking the Right Questions: A Guide to Critical Thinking—Neil Browne and Stuart Keeley

Listen! Ask!

• Listening Leaders: The Ten Golden Rules To Listen, Lead & Succeed —Lyman Steil and Richard Bommelje• The Zen of Listening—Rebecca Shafir• Effective Listening Skills—Dennis Kratz and Abby Robinson Kratz• Are You Really Listening?—Paul Donoghue and Mary Siegel• Active Listening: Improve Your Ability to Listen and Lead —Michael Hoppe• Listening: The Forgotten Skill—Madelyn Burley-Allen

• Leading with Questions: How Leaders Find the Right Solutions by Knowing What to Ask—Michael Marquardt• Smart Questions: Learn to Ask the Right Questions for Powerful Results—Gerald Nadler and William Chandon• The Art of Asking: Ask Better Questions, Get Better Answers —Terry Fadem• How to Ask Great Questions—Karen Lee-Thorp• Change Your Questions, Change Your Life—Marilee Adams• Asking the Right Questions: A Guide to Critical Thinking—Neil Browne and Stuart Keeley

“The four most important words in any

organization are …

The four most important words in any organization

are … “What do you

think?”

“WDYT” = Certification of me

as a person of Importance whose opinion is valued.

Tomorrow: How many times will you

“ask the WDYT question”?

[Count!] [Practice

makes better!] [This is a

STRATEGIC skill!]

Teacher gives a science exam. Students prepped—know what’s coming. Quiet in the room. Then din. Students complaining. “Will the last question count?” Teacher: “Most definitely.” And the last

question is: “What is the first name of the person who cleans the room after class?”

(Hint: Otis.)

Teacher: “As you go forward in life, you will meet many people. All of them are important. Each one deserves your attention and respect …”

Source: Deborah Norville, The Power of Respect.

“It was much later that I realized Dad’s secret. He gained respect by giving it. He talked and listened to

the fourth-grade kids in Spring Valley who shined shoes the same way he talked and listened to a bishop or a

college president. He was seriously interested in

who you were and what you had to say.”

—Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot, Respect

“I regard apologizing as the most magical, healing,

restorative gesture human beings can make. It is the

centerpiece of my work with executives who want to get

better.” —Marshall Goldsmith, What Got You Here Won’t Get You There: How Successful People Become

Even More Successful

“I regard apologizing as the most magical, healing,

restorative gesture human beings can make. It is the

centerpiece of my work with executives who want to get

better.” —Marshall Goldsmith, What Got You Here Won’t Get You There: How Successful People Become

Even More Successful

Relationships (of all varieties): THERE ONCE WAS A TIME WHEN A

THREE-MINUTE PHONE CALL

WOULD HAVE AVOIDED SETTING OFF THE DOWNWARD

SPIRAL THAT RESULTED IN A COMPLETE RUPTURE.

I believe this is true 100% of the time. Most of my

personal and professional disasters could clearly have been reversed or ameliorated with such a call.

The “three-minute call” often-usually-invariably leads to a strengthening of the relationship. It not only acts as atonement but also paves the path for a “better than ever”

trajectory.

THE PROBLEM IS RARELY/NEVER THE

PROBLEM. THE RESPONSE TO THE

PROBLEM INVARIABLY ENDS UP BEING THE

REAL PROBLEM.**PERCEPTION IS ALL THERE IS!

Think Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton, Martha Stewart. None, and a host like them, ever got in trouble for “the act itself”—but instead for the cover-up.

pause

THE PROBLEM IS RARELY/NEVER THE

PROBLEM. THE RESPONSE TO THE

PROBLEM INVARIABLY ENDS UP BEING THE

REAL PROBLEM.**PERCEPTION IS ALL THERE IS!

*effective “Repair”/Apology is of the

utmost … strategic importance!

*effective repair is a proper …

core value ! *effective repair is …

trainable !

*effective repair is a …

profession !

I have come to love the word “thoughtful.” Especially in difficult times. It is a “way to live in the world”—and I firmly believe it can contribute directly to the bottom line. It is a matter of trust and character and courtesy—all three pay big dividends. (Not to mention the fact that thoughtfulness results in a more attractive image when one looks in the mirror or discusses what one does with our children.)

Thoughtfulness is key to customer retention.Thoughtfulness is key to employee recruitment and satisfaction.Thoughtfulness is key to brand perception.Thoughtfulness is key to your ability to look in the mirror —and tell your kids about your job.

“Thoughtfulness is free.”Thoughtfulness is key to speeding things up— it reduces friction.Thoughtfulness is key to transparency and even cost containment—it abets rather than stifles truth-telling.

*Thoughtfulness is of the

utmost … strategic importance!

*thoughtfulness is a proper …

core value !

*Thoughtfulness is … trainable !

*Thoughtfulness is a …

profession !

Press Ganey Assoc: 139,380 former patients from 225 hospitals:

none of THE top 15 factors

determining Patient Satisfaction referred to the patient’s health outcome

P.S. directly related to Staff Interaction

P.S. directly correlated with Employee Satisfaction

Source: Putting Patients First, Susan Frampton, Laura Gilpin, Patrick Charmel

Stunning.

Patient satisfaction is primarily related to the quality of interactions with hospital staff—which in turn is primarily caused by the quality of staffers’ interactions with one another.

“There is a misconception that supportive interactions require more staff or more time and are therefore more costly. Although

labor costs are a substantial part of any hospital budget, the interactions themselves add nothing to the budget.

Kindness is free. Listening to patients or answering their

questions costs nothing. It can be argued that negative interactions—alienating patients, being non-responsive to their needs or limiting their sense of control—can be very costly. …

Angry, frustrated or frightened patients may be combative, withdrawn and less cooperative—requiring far more time than it would have taken to interact with them initially in a

positive way.” —Putting Patients First, Susan Frampton, Laura Gilpin, Patrick Charmel

“Kindness is free.”

Big 5

1. Listen. (Respect. Learn)

2. Ask. (Solicit. Engage. Inspire.)

3. Thank. (Appreciate. Acknowledge.)

4. Apologize (Rectify. Build.)

5. Practice thoughtfulness (A way of life. A staple of “good business.”)