Discuss the ways in which you can prepare yourself physically and ...

[Collmarie]

Discuss the ways in which you can prepare yourself physically and mentally to listen attentively to a speaker at a training session.
 
  What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

Lenny is attending a training session on how to achieve work-life balance. Discuss the steps he can follow to ensure that he has retained the content of the speaker's message.
 
  What will be an ideal response?

[canderson530]

Answer to Question 1

Listening is a combination of physical and mental activities. Although the mental part of
listening is more complex, you must also remember to take responsibility for the physical part
of listening as well. If you are experiencing any hearing difficulties, schedule a hearing
examination with a medical professional. The most important factor in effective listening is
being mentally prepared. Mental preparation involves a receptive frame of mind and certain
communication tools, such as an extensive vocabulary. Good listeners clear their minds of
extraneous thoughts so that their minds are open to receive the speaker's message. If your
professional goals include progressing through positions of added responsibility and reward,
then the general vocabulary you acquired in high school and college may not be adequate for
effective listening in the workplace. Almost every field has its own lexicon or specialized
vocabulary, and the listener must master this vocabulary to understand the material under
discussion. When you communicate with co-workers and supervisors, follow the same
procedure of collecting and learning new and useful words so that they become part of your
own vocabulary.

Answer to Question 2

To ensure that he has retained the speaker's message, Lenny should:
a) Identify ideas and relationships. As he begins to grasp the speaker's ideas, he should look
for relationships among them.
b) Summarize main points. As he listens, he should summarize the speaker's words by
paraphrasing them in his own words. By reducing the speaker's message to its most basic
terms, he will be able to understand and remember the message better.
c) Assess the message. As he summarizes the speaker's message and sees the organization
and the relationship structure of the speaker's ideas, he will probably find himself beginning to
agree or disagree with the speaker. When this happens, he can try to trace his response to the
speaker's reasons or arguments. He should ask himself if the arguments and ideas of the
speaker really lead to his or her conclusions. Also, he should determine if the speaker is trying
to convince him with reason or to persuade him by pleading, coaxing, or insisting. He should
make sure that he is in favor of the speaker's views for substantive and tangible reasons, not
just because they are presented with humor, enthusiasm, or charm.
d) Formulate questions. Formulating questions will help him stay focused on what the speaker
is saying. He might ask questions of the speaker to clarify a point that is unclear or to
determine if he has interpreted the material correctly.
e) Associate ideas with familiar concepts. As he listens to the speaker's ideas, he should
relate this information to what he already knows about the topic or related topics. Doing so
allows him to quickly grasp the information presented by the speaker.
f) Consider ways to use the information. One of the best ways to personally integrate the
speaker's message is to determine how he can best use the information in the message.
g) Take notes. He is most likely to take notes in meetings or in a lecture or conference setting.
Notes, however, should be more than just aids to memory.