Active Listening
The Basic Idea
Have you ever zoned out while someone is talking? Found yourself communicating without really being aware of what the other person is saying? While it’s easy to find ourselves in these moments of distraction, an attentive approach to a speaker’s verbal and non-verbal forms of communication can make interactions more meaningful and effective.
Active listening is a communication technique that involves giving free and undivided attention to the speaker. Although on the surface this seems like a straightforward skill, it scarcely occurs during everyday discussions, as people tend to focus more on their opportunity to speak. Active listening, on the other hand, is a challenging task requiring intense concentration on what a speaker is conveying, or attempting to convey.
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When people talk, listen completely. Most people never listen.
- Ernest Hemingway
About the Authors
Dan Pilat
Dan is a Co-Founder and Managing Director at The Decision Lab. He is a bestselling author of Intention - a book he wrote with Wiley on the mindful application of behavioral science in organizations. Dan has a background in organizational decision making, with a BComm in Decision & Information Systems from McGill University. He has worked on enterprise-level behavioral architecture at TD Securities and BMO Capital Markets, where he advised management on the implementation of systems processing billions of dollars per week. Driven by an appetite for the latest in technology, Dan created a course on business intelligence and lectured at McGill University, and has applied behavioral science to topics such as augmented and virtual reality.
Dr. Sekoul Krastev
Sekoul is a Co-Founder and Managing Director at The Decision Lab. He is a bestselling author of Intention - a book he wrote with Wiley on the mindful application of behavioral science in organizations. A decision scientist with a PhD in Decision Neuroscience from McGill University, Sekoul's work has been featured in peer-reviewed journals and has been presented at conferences around the world. Sekoul previously advised management on innovation and engagement strategy at The Boston Consulting Group as well as on online media strategy at Google. He has a deep interest in the applications of behavioral science to new technology and has published on these topics in places such as the Huffington Post and Strategy & Business.
