The Importance Of Listening In The Workplace.

In this blog, I share a very important philosophy that is used by famous author and inspirational speaker, Simon Sinek.

I am sure there have been times where you have come up with a great idea, only for it to be shut down immediately. I can re-call many times in a work environment, I would come up with ideas, which I and many others thought were great, only to have the seniors/bosses turn it down and list many reasons why it will not work.

Sometimes, yes, it is because the idea may not be a good one. However, I believe that sometimes, it is the fear of change or fear of the unknown that leads to many ideas being shut down.

Think of all the great ideas that could have been implemented in this world if only someone had simply taken the time to truly listen. If you are in a position of power/authority and someone comes up to you with an idea, I want you to adopt a certain philosophy. This philosophy comes from Simon Sinek, an excellent author and inspirational speaker.

Simon’s philosophy is this:

• “The next time someone starts listing all the reasons an idea won’t work or can’t happen, ask them to give 3 reasons it can.”

  

By adopting this mentality and trying your best to figure out how an idea can work, it will lead to more positive outcomes. By showing that you attempted to implement an idea, it will build more trust between teams, more respect and stronger relationships.

If you simply dis-regard an idea without putting any real thought into it, this will lead to many people not feeling respected, valued and can potentially damage relationships.

I see the value in Simon Sinek’s philosophy. With prior experience, I know the feeling that many people receive when they are enthusiastic about an idea, only to have no thought or effort be put into from the people in power.

Starting from today, make the people around you feel valued and adopt this philosophy. It will only lead to better work environments, stronger teams and more positivity!