MICROLEARNING LIBRARY  
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Active Listening
(Be A Good Listener)

96% of people think they're good listeners, yet studies show that only 10% of us really listen effectively and forget 1/2 of what was said right afterwards. Good News: Active listening is a learned skill, not a personality trait. Being heard is what makes patients, and everyone else, feel safe and understood, long before we ever share our own side. This upSKILL focuses on how to be a good listener.
   6:02 Watch Time [Week 17 from the Weekly upSKILL series]
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 Real Help 

Solve these 'people problems'

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For upSKILLers:

  • Missing part of what someone says because you're thinking about your response  
  • Patients feeling rushed or unimportant when you're multitasking
  • Interrupting or finishing someone's sentence without meaning to, assuming you already know what they're trying to say
  • Knowing the difference between hearing someone and actually making them feel heard
  • Getting to the heart of a conversation faster because the other person already feels understood
  • Bringing that same presence to teammates, friends, and family too

For Leaders:

  • Team members half-listening or multitasking instead of giving patients full attention 
  • Patients feeling unheard or unimportant, even when the interaction was technically handled well
  • Miscommunication and conflict that escalates because no one feels understood first
  • Coaching team members to be present and genuinely curious instead of thinking ahead to the next task
  • Creating patient encounters that move faster because patients feel heard the first time 
  • Setting the standard for a team that seeks to understand before jumping to be understood
 Data 

It's science

Communication research found that immediately after listening to someone speak, most people retain only about half of what was said, a number that drops even further within a day or two.(1)
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That means even our best intentions to listen well can quietly fail without real focus behind them.
The term "active listening" was coined by researchers studying how genuinely focused listening changes the outcome of a conversation.(2)
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Simply being in the room isn't the same as being present in it.
The classic principle to seek first to understand, then be understood, is built on the idea that people become far more open once they feel understood themselves.(3)
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Listening first is often what softens a hard conversation before it escalates.
 Note 

From The Experts

"If we want to be understood, we have to first seek to understand, then be understood. This will change your life."
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- Christine & Lauren, The Patient Whisperers
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 SERIES 

This is adapted from Weekly: Mastering Soft Skills

by The Patient Whisperers:
Soft skills that make work and life better.
For everyone who works with patients - or interacts with humans.

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Ralph Chu, MD
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Chu Vision Institute

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 WHO 

Meet the experts

The Patient Whisperers
Christine Scarlett
& Lauren Weaver
Former practice leaders leading change by bringing relational intelligence, soft skills + emotional connection into healthcare as authors, speakers, and upSKILL instructors. 
Get to know them here or connect on social media:
Christine Scarlett
Former CMO
& Director of Patient Experience
From counseling patients, to Director of Patient Experience, to CMO, Christine's worn nearly every 'hat' in a healthcare practice. The driving force? Her love for people... creating exceptional patient experiences and empowering those who serve them.
Lauren Weaver
Former
Director of Brand Development
Bringing her PR, branding, social media influencer status, and love of storytelling with her, Lauren turned how we market and build a brand for ourselves in healthcare upside down by redefining how we connect with our patients, both in practice and online.
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(1) Nichols, R. G., & Stevens, L. A. (1957). "Listening to People." Harvard Business Review, 35(5), 85-92. (2) Rogers, C. R., & Farson, R. E. (1957). "Active Listening." University of Chicago Industrial Relations Center. (3) Covey, S. R. (1989). The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Free Press.