The Art Of Listening
Its hard to be in a service business and not focus considerable attention on the art of listening. It is, after all, the gateway to your client's soul, and when you are able to communicate at that level, you've gone a long way toward becoming your client's trusted advisor. See earlier posts here and here. But there is a big difference between knowing that you should listen and knowing how to do so effectively. How do you train someone to make great art?
Those interested in improving this critical skill must read Arnie Herz's blog, legal sanity. Arnie has a great post--"client relations 101: active listening and the art of conversation"--that discusses listening in general, and the concept of active listening in particular. Among Arnie's suggestions:
1) Listen 50% more
2) Ask twice as many questions
3) Hold eye contact 50% more
4) Make slight contact, or hold contact slightly longer
5) Show sincere sympathy or enthusiasm for something they say
6) Ask them if there is anything you could help out with
Bravo Arnie. Great post. Many thanks to Gerry Riskin for highlighting Arnie's post in his amazing blog, Amazing Firms, Amazing Practices.