The fundamental tool business leaders can use to effectively communicate — Julian Treasure

In today’s noisy, fast-paced, and competitive business landscape, effective listening and speaking are skills you should master. It ultimately impacts your bottom line. On today’s The Small Business Show, we’re pleased to welcome 5-time TED and International Keynote Speaker, Entrepreneur, and Author of Sound Business and How to be Heard Julian Treasure. Julian joins us to share his insights into conscious listening and powerful speaking. 

Treasure asserts to viewers that the first step business leaders must master to achieve conscious listening is differentiating between listening and hearing. Hearing is a capability, while listening is a skill that requires work. Listening is a mental process that involves selecting things to pay attention to and making them meaningful. For example, “If you consciously pay attention to what you’re doing all the time, it will tremendously improve your relationships and communication performance.”

Missed Opportunities

We live in a complex world where things are always happening, and we are constantly distracted by hand-held computers. It’s important to note that several companies spend billions on tools that grab our attention. When leading a business, listening is essential. Leaders must listen to the people they work with to understand them better, and they need to attend all the way around. “Listening is a fundamental way of protecting yourself and your business,” asserts Treasure.  

“Listening requires a degree in humility” — Julian Treasure

Most salespeople would agree that listening to understand the consumer’s needs is the most important part of their sales conversation. And then, you can meet, match, or exceed their expectations. However, partial listening factors impact the value of any conversation. For example, Treasure claims there are distractions like technology and speech writing that he defines as inconvenient noise occurring in front of you [someone speaking] while you are trying to compose your next greatest monologue. 

Recommendations

Effective communication is essential since it indicates that you are aware of your delivery when speaking. This includes your speech rate, tone, and pitch, as well as your level of elation and goals. It’s also important to consider your intentions for conversing with other individuals. To illustrate, in business meetings, set a timeframe and agenda before the session starts to avoid unnecessary sidebar conversations. Treasure reiterates that when controlling the exchange of a forum, make it a contract to bond. This will keep everyone aligned to the common goal while enhancing the participants’ listening.