Interpersonal Skills: The Art Of Listening

As technology has reached new heights, interpersonal skills have become crucial to the everyday lifestyle. There are various skills and abilities wrapped-up in the term interpersonal skills, but there are two in particular that are essential to being a successful Human Resource Manager, effective communication and attentive listener. In the last decade, the human resources department has advanced, and is now considered a prime position and backbone to organizations. It is not only having knowledge of the traditional functions of personnel, but possessing the effective skills and abilities to perform them. Interpersonal skills are vital to the daily activities of a Human Resource Manager. Knowing how to communicate is key in order to successfully …show more content…
It is said that hearing is an ability while listening is a skill. While hearing is one of our 5 senses, listening requires focus. Not just hearing the words, but reading body language tells a tale as much as the words that are spoken, it also tells what is not being said. As e-mail, blogging, Facebook and other social media have grown to be part of the daily aspect of life, one might be led to believe that written communications is the most important skill to have, but that would be wrong. With additional exploring the art of listening, “A typical study points out that many spend 70 to 80 percent of the waking hours in some form of communication. Of that time, about 9 percent writing, 16 percent reading, 30 percent speaking, and 45 percent listening. Studies also confirm that most are poor and inefficient listeners.” (Peters, 2004). This particular statistic is also referenced by (Lee and Hatesohl, 2014). That is a substantial amount of listening in a day. Listening is a deliberate, intentional act that provides context and meaning to communication, and that is important in a business setting, whether it be with co-workers or clients. “An essential human resources skill for leaders is the ability to actively listen to others. Hearing is one thing, listening—really listening—is quite another. Active listening requires our focused attention. It’s not enough to listen and be focused on what people are saying. People need to know that they are being listened to. The need to show one’s attentiveness when others talk.” (MacDonald, 2008). This coincides with why listening is an important quality to possess as a Human Resource Manager. Critical hearing is an accurate reflection of what is said, and, in turn, that what is being said is accurately heard. An enhanced, more comprehensive understanding and sincere commitment to perfecting the skill of active