Master Leaders
I have just finished George Barna’s wonderful book Master Leaders: 30 Leadership Greats. 16 Keys to Success. One Amazing Conversation. Barna chronicles the green room conversations he had with 30 of the world’s most iconic leaders at a conference he was hosting.
The book concludes with a discussion about the one skill most necessary to be an effective leader.
What do you think that skill is? Vision? Communication? Courage? Character? Team building? Building trust? Yes, all of these are important but they were not identified as the one which is most necessary.
The One Skill Most Necessary To Being An Effective Leader Is Listening Skills
Quoting Tony Robbins, Ken Blanchard said, “There are two kinds of listening. One is sorting by self and the other is sorting by others. People who are lousy listeners sort by self. If you say to them, ‘It’s a beautiful day,’ they’ll say ‘Yeah, but you should have seen the weather in Michigan where I was yesterday.’ They take the conversation away from you. They sort by self.”
“People who sort by others keep the ball in the other person’s court. If you say to them, ‘Isn’t it a beautiful day?’ people who sort by others would respond, ‘What does a beautiful day do for you?’ If you reply, ‘Well, it just gives me energy,’ then they’d ask, ‘What happens when you get that kind of energy?'”
Blanchard added, “The whole thing about listening is to listen with the attitude that you could have your mind changed.”
He continued, “Another important thing is knowing the difference between listening and deciding. One of the reasons a lot of people don’t listen is that when you give them feedback, they start thinking about all the problems implementing what you just said and then they tell you why it’s going to be hard to do that, than just asking for more information about how it could work so that later on they can decide whether they want to do something with the idea.”
Blanchard concluded by saying, “Listening is probably one of the most important skills and one we could all use. I love the whole concept of leading with your ears.”
What Leaders Said
Lou Holtz said, “I never learned anything – and I’m an old man – by talking. The only times I’ve ever learned anything were by listening or reading.”
Rich Stearns added, “It’s important for a leader to listen to multiple points of view. Be willing to listen – and don’t just pretend you’re listening, but actually listen to what people think and gather information from different points of view.”
Laurie Beth Jones continued the conversation, “Perhaps the most important quality that a leader can possess is appreciative inquiry and listening with a preconceived agenda.”
Measurement And Training
John Townsend than added a unique perspective on the subject of listening. He said, “The leader must be able to measure value added by listening… Leaders need to see there is value in listening, because it adds to their expected outcome and goals.”
So first Townsend challenges us to measure the value of listening. Then he discusses the importance of training to be a better listener. He says, “I really believe in role-playing. I believe that, since leaders, often don’t come by that skill naturally, they need to see it. What they see and experience is what they remember.”
What is one thing you learned about listening skills which will make you a better leader? And if you want to purchase Barna’s book, you can do so by clicking HERE or on the image provided.
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