Listening

Mary Ellen Guffey, Business Communication: Process and Product, 5e

Ch. 3, Slide 1
 Oral Communication in the
Workplace
• Private discussion • Gossiping
• Telephone • Talking in the
• Interviews hallway
• Trainings
• Meetings
• Seminars
• Presentation
• conferences
Mary Ellen Guffey, Business Communication: Process and Product, 5e

Ch. 3, Slide 2
 The Listening Process
1.Receiving

2. Interpretation

3. Remembering

4. Evaluating

Mary Ellen Guffey, Business Communication: Process and Product, 5e

Ch. 3, Slide 3
 The Listening Process
5. Responding

6. Acting

Mary Ellen Guffey, Business Communication: Process and Product, 5e

Ch. 3, Slide 4
 Listening Process Barriers
Mental Barriers

• Prejudgment

• Closed-mindedness

• Selfishness

• Selective Listening

Mary Ellen Guffey, Business Communication: Process and Product, 5e

Ch. 3, Slide 5
 Listening in the Workplace
Improving Listening in the Workplace
• Prepare to listen
• Control external and internal distractions.
• Separate facts from opinions.
• Identify important facts.
• Ask clarifying questions.
• Avoid pre-judgment.
• Establish eye contact
• Take notes to ensure retention.
• Watch for signals
• Give feedback

Mary Ellen Guffey, Business Communication: Process and Product, 5e

Ch. 3, Slide 6
 Listening in the Workplace

• Defer judgment.
• Pay attention to content (not to appearance, form, or
surface issues).
• Listen completely.
• Listen primarily for the main idea; avoid responding
to sidetracking issues.
• Do only one thing at a time; listening is a full-time job.
• Control your emotions.
• Be silent for a moment after person finishes.
• Make affirming statements and invite additional
comments.

Mary Ellen Guffey, Business Communication: Process and Product, 5e

Ch. 3, Slide 7
 Barriers to Listening
• Pre-judgment • Listening for Facts
• Uninteresting Topics • Selective Listening
• Speaker’s Delivery • Personal Bias
• External • Language/Culture
Distractions Differences
• Selfishness • Faking Attention

Mary Ellen Guffey, Business Communication: Process and Product, 5e

Ch. 3, Slide 8
 Most Irritating Listening
Habits
1. Rushing the speaker and making
him feel he is wasting the listener’s
time.
2. Interrupting the speaker.
3. Not looking at the speaker.
4. Getting ahead of the speaker
(finishing her thoughts).
5. Not responding to the speaker’s
requests.
Mary Ellen Guffey, Business Communication: Process and Product, 5e

Ch. 3, Slide 9
 Most Irritating Listening
Habits
6. Showing interest in something
other than what the speaker is
saying.
7. Saying “Yes, but . . .,” as if the
listener’s mind is made up.
8. Topping the speaker’s story with
“That reminds me . . .” or “That’s
nothing; let me tell you about. . . .”

Mary Ellen Guffey, Business Communication: Process and Product, 5e

Ch. 3, Slide 10
 Most Irritating Listening
Habits
9. Forgetting what was talked about
previously.
10. Asking too many questions about
details.

Based on International Listening Association <www.listen.org/pages/

irritating listening habits.html>, January 2001.

Mary Ellen Guffey, Business Communication: Process and Product, 5e

Ch. 3, Slide 11