Investigative Listening & Positive Challenge

Introduction

Have you ever been 'ranted' at?
Are you required to manage inflexible behaviour in your business?
Do you ever feel you are not getting the whole story?

We have coached senior business people in several large organisations and often draw upon the experience we gained during those training sessions. A consistent theme amongst people is the following quote, "I wish that I had learnt to listen properly earlier in my career."

Imagine for a moment that a colleague has attended a one-hour business meeting and provides you with a five-minute summary. What have they done to the information to condense an hour into five minutes? If the summary doesn't add up; how can you investigate precisely? Where do you look for the missing information? How can you hear what they are not saying?

How many other types of meetings or reports are too concise to accurately convey all of the relevant factors? How many errors or misunderstandings arise from some seemingly irrelevant information not being shared?

Would it be valuable to learn how to listen more precisely and have some investigative techniques to gather specific information?

Intention

To become aware that when you are thinking of what you will say next - you are not listening; to put a gap between stimulus and response.
To listen to what is actually said, rather than thinking, "I know what they mean by that."
To hear the distortions in someone's speech and to question them precisely

Methodology

Demonstration of contrasting effective and ineffective listening scenarios
Explicit input of the patterns that indicate potential distortions in the speaker's account
Exercise to notice and positively challenge distorted information
Feedback and discussion in the context of further real scenarios

Explicit content/techniques

Resourceful perceptions and approaches supported by conclusive psychological study
Body language techniques to maintain a positive atmosphere around the interaction
Linguistic 'framing' and elements of The Meta Model for precise questioning

Outcomes

Recognise how the meaning of what is said and what is heard can be different
Turn off your attempts to 'mind read' and listen impartially
Identify when the speaker is presenting ambiguous and summarised information
Demonstrate the use of investigative questions to gain more precise information

Logistics

This session can be run as a 180-minute 'nugget' or as a one-day training course
We like to use two facilitators for the 'nugget' version of this session - optimum number of attendees is 12 the maximum is 24
For an optimal training environment we prefer a theatre style room layout with plenty of room for participants to move around
Equipment requirements are a flip chart (necessity) and a projector/screen (optional)

Interested in Investigative Listening? Contact Noggin

If you are interested in investigative listening and positive challenge, why not contact us now?