Empathic

Attentive
Selective

Ignoring

Pretend
ing

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5 TYPES OF LISTENING
Five types of listening
Covey distinguishes between five types of listening (or
pretending to listen).
Ignoring: not really listening at all.
Pretending: humming along while not really following.
Selective listening: hearing what you want to hear.
Attentive listening: paying attention to the words.
Empathic listening: intending to understand what the
other is trying to communicate.
Empathic listening is not about agreeing with the other
(showing sympathy). It is about understanding what message
the other is trying to convey. It is the only form of true listening.

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Judge Do I
agree/
Evaluate
disagree?

Keep asking
too
many
Probe
questions

Teach
others
what to
Advise
do

Guess the
speakers
Interpret
motives
2014 LogiGear Corporation. All Rights Reserved

What you should NOT do:

Four types of reacting from an egocentric perspective,
that are unproductive:
Evaluate: immediately let the other know whether
you agree or disagree;
Probe: keep asking questions and investigating;
Advise: counsel purely based on your personal
experiences;
Interpret: try to define the motives of the behavior
based on your personal experience.
2014 LogiGear Corporation. All Rights Reserved

 Understand
what theyve said
what theyve not said
Get what theyve not
said
Say it in your own words
Check your understanding

Repeat their words Do

not judge

2014 LogiGear Corporation. All Rights Reserved

Empathic listening is the way to go, and can be divided into

different levels:
Mimic the content: repeat what the other just said. This makes
sure that you are listening and that the other knows you are.
The good thing of mimicking is that there is no place for
judgment;
Rephrase the content: tell the same story, but in your own
words. You do not only show that you are listening, but also
that you understand what the other is (literally) saying;
Reflect on feelings: focus on the emotions that lie behind what
is told, not on the words that try to express these emotions;
Rephrase the content and reflect the feeling: this is a
combination of the second and third form of empathic
listening. It shows that you are really listening and
understanding what message lies behind the words.
2014 LogiGear Corporation. All Rights Reserved