Contents
Listening and Leadership
The Active Listening Skill Set
Pay Attention
Hold Judgment
Reflect
Clarify
Summarize
Share
Barriers to Active Listening
The Image of Leadership
Silence as Agreement
External Pressures
Lack of Know-how
Individual Makeup
Time and Place
Emotion
Cultural Differences
How to Improve Your Listening Skills
Leading with Active Listening
Suggested Readings
Background
Key Point Summary
Lead Contributor
Ideas Into Action Guidebooks
Aimed at managers and executives who are concerned with their own and others’ development, each guidebook in this series gives specific advice on how to complete a developmental task or solve a leadership problem.
| LEAD CONTRIBUTOR | Michael H. Hoppe | |
| CONTRIBUTORS | Wilfred Drath Chris Ernst Cynthia D. McCauley Lisa Moye | |
| DIRECTOR OF PUBLICATIONS | Martin Wilcox | |
| EDITOR | Peter Scisco | |
| ASSOCIATE EDITOR | Karen Mayworth | |
| WRITER | Rebecca Garau | |
| DESIGN AND LAYOUT | Joanne Ferguson | |
| CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS | Laura J. Gibson Chris Wilson, 29 & Company |
Copyright ©2006 Center for Creative Leadership.
All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
CCL No. 430
ISBN-13: 978-1-882197-94-1
ISBN-10: 1-882197-94-1
Center for Creative Leadership
Post Office Box 26300
Greensboro, North Carolina 27438-6300
336-288-7210
www.ccl.org/publications
pfeiffer.com/go/cclguidebooks
The Ideas Into Action Guidebook Series
This series of guidebooks draws on the practical knowledge that the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL®) has generated, since its inception in 1970, through its research and educational activity conducted in partnership with hundreds of thousands of managers and executives. Much of this knowledge is shared—in a way that is distinct from the typical university department, professional association, or consultancy. CCL is not simply a collection of individual experts, although the individual credentials of its staff are impressive; rather it is a community, with its members holding certain principles in common and working together to understand and generate practical responses to today’s leadership and organizational challenges.
The purpose of the series is to provide managers with specific advice on how to complete a developmental task or solve a leadership challenge. In doing that, the series carries out CCL’s mission to advance the understanding, practice, and development of leadership for the benefit of society worldwide. We think you will find the Ideas Into Action Guidebooks an important addition to your leadership toolkit.
Executive Brief
Active listening is a person’s willingness and ability to hear and understand. At its core, active listening is a state of mind that involves paying full and careful attention to the other person, avoiding premature judgment, reflecting understanding, clarifying information, summarizing, and sharing. By learning and committing to the skills and behaviors of active listening, leaders can become more effective listeners and, over time, improve their ability to lead.