Listening Skills Sue Falkingham Audiologist/Hearing Therapist/RHAD

3 parts to a hearing solution Apply technology intelligently Listen to your client and seek ways to improve satisfaction Coach your client to improve their own listening skills and behaviour

Listening Test

Scoring 5 = always 4 = frequently 3 = occasionally 2 = rarely 1 = never

First... Your Predictions A.You are a good listener B.You’re OK, but you could stand some improvement. C.You need some work on your listening skills.

1) Do you ever ask people to repeat what they just said, even though you were not in a noisy room? 2) Do you ever plan on how you are going to respond (e.g. Fix the problem) to someone when that person is still talking? 3) Do you ever pretend that you are paying attention to someone? 4) Do you ever pay more attention to how the speaker looks, or what words he/she is using rather than what is being said?

5) Do you ever find yourself waiting until a person pauses so that you can let him/her know what your opinion is about the situation? 6) Does your mind tend to wander when you are listening to someone speak about something you know about? 7) Do you concentrate on the facts when speaking to someone? 8) Do you ever multi-task when listening to someone?

9) Do you get so angry or concerned about what someone is saying that you have difficulty listening to what is being said? 10) Does your mind tend to wander when you are listening to a topic that is difficult for you to understand, uninteresting, overly familiar or dull?

Your Score You are a good listener You’re OK, but could stand some improvement You need some work on your listening skills.

Listening Skills

Fact centred rather than person centred listening If we know enough facts about the person we can help them. NOT TRUE We can set up an aid with every feature and program directed to the Customer’s needs but if they are too embarrassed to put it in the ear it will not work.

Improve communication not just audibility of signal

Hearing Care Professional 1 Technology: Hearing aids work 10 Personal Motivation 9 Professionalism8 Thorough Evaluation 7 Personal Counseling 6 Strong Recommendation 5 Experimentation4 Verification and Validation 3 Continued Connection to Provider 2 Hearing Industries Association, 2007

What do Customers talk about? Experiences Thoughts that go through their minds Their behaviour Their feelings, emotions and moods that are the affect of the above

What do Customer’s talk about? Experiences - He talks to me from the other room all the time Thoughts that go through their minds - If he only spoke clearer I would hear him fine. Their behaviour - I shout back at him and tell him I can’t hear and then he continues to reply and we start to argue The feelings, emotions and moods that are the effect of the above - we always seem to be arguing these days, it’s easier not to talk at all than get into an argument.

What do Customer’s talk about? He talks to me from the other room all the time If he only spoke clearer I would hear him fine. I shout back at him and tell him I can’t hear and then he continues to reply and we start to argue We always seem to be arguing these days, it’s easier not to talk at all than get into an argument.

POOR LISTENING

Forms of poor listening Partial Listening Pick up bits and pieces, but not necessarily the essential points the client is making. When we only partially listen and miss the point it often leads the Customer to feel we are not interested and often leads to a breakdown in the relationship and poor understanding. Example Telling a Customer that they will hear the T.V. better when they have stated they use headphones for the T.V. And are happy with that.

Forms of poor listening Tape recorder listening Being able to repeat the exact words the Customer has said to you but not really tuning into the listening so not noticing the emotions and expressions of feelings behind the words. Example Not being able to prioritise the list of areas a Customer has expressed difficulties in. This can lead to focussing on an area that has least importance to the client and so seems less likely to be worth the effort of using a hearing aid.

Forms of poor listening Rehearsing Thinking in your head how you will respond to an issue the Customer has raised and rehearsing your response in your head means you have stopped listening to the Customer in front of you. Example Thinking how will I persuade them to have 2 hearing aids when they are talking about only a small problem in their left ear and your previous tests show both ears would benefit from hearing aids.

Learning to listen

Making a connection Allows the RHAD to understand the motivations that Customers carry with them. Builds confidence in Customers that the RHAD’s recommendations will be right for them.

Empathic Listening Centres on attending, listening and being with the customer Need to enter the customer’s world to understand their struggles Helps you search for problem management with validity and depth. Focussed unbiased listening is required

Listening in order to help Customers will often focus on telling you what happens to them rather than on how they think, feel and react to experiences. If it is happening to them they are not responsible and it is others or the world in general that are responsible for the problems.

Listening in order to help Everyone has something going for them. A personal resource they can use to make changes. It is your job to listen carefully and point out those resources and how the customer could use them to tackle problem situations. Remember People generally only use a fraction of their own potential (Maslow 1968)

Summary of the ways we listen well Turn taking – dialogue not monologue Connecting – respond to the Customer’s remarks Mutual Influencing – change one another to be open to new learning Co-creating outcomes - agreeing goals

Do nothing else, have respect for their time with you She is just not interested in my problems He is always fiddling with papers when I am talking It’s as if he has heard it all before

Congress Next year: East Midlands Conference Centre May 13 th and 14 th 2016 Put it in your diary