How to improve your listening comprehension

To improve your listening comprehension, follow these steps:

• Provide your full attention

  When someone is communicating with you, it is very important to give that person, and what they are saying, your full attention. Try not to multitask or engage in any other activities that might be distracting during a conversation.

• Use active listening

  Active listening skills are crucial to professional communication, and all communication in general. Active listening requires you not only to hear what someone is saying to you but also to comprehend and appropriately process their message. Ways to improve your active listening skills include:

• Asking relevant questions
• Paraphrasing what is being said to you
• Giving the person you are communicating with feedback

  Active listening is paramount to improving your overall listening abilities and skills.

• Don't interrupt others

  Another key to improving your listening skills is to practice not interrupting others when they are speaking. In general, interrupting is considered rude, and it exhibits the opposite of listening, mostly that you are just waiting to speak instead of listening. Interrupting also prevents your communication partner from fully expressing themselves.

• Stay open-minded

  It is also very important that you approach each conversation with an open mind. Avoid making rash assumptions and judgments about the person you are speaking to and what they are saying.

• Use empathy

  To use empathy you must try to see things from the perspective of the person you are communicating with. When you do this it can help you comprehend their message more accurately and also help you to form more insightful or thoughtful responses.

• Note-taking

  In the professional context, one great way to improve your listening skills is to take notes during the conversation. You also then have the opportunity to review the notes after your conversation for maximum comprehension.