What does it mean to really listen?

What does it mean to really listen?

 

Real listening is an active process that has three basic steps.

 

1. Hearing. Hearing just means listening enough to catch what the speaker is saying. For example, say you were listening to a report on zebras, and the speaker mentioned that no two are alike. If you can repeat the fact, then you have heard what has been said.
2. Understanding. The next part of listening happens when you take what you have heard and understand it in your own way. Let’s go back to that report on zebras. When you hear that no two are alike, think about what that might mean. You might think, “Maybe this means that the pattern of stripes is different for each zebra.”
3. Judging. After you are sure you understand what the speaker has said, think about whether it makes sense. Do you believe what you have heard? You might think, “How could the stripes to be different for every zebra? But then again, the fingerprints are different for every person. I think this seems believable.”

Tips for being a good listener

1. Give your full attention on the person who is speaking. Don’t look out the window or at what else is going on in the room.
2. Make sure your mind is focused, too. It can be easy to let your mind wander if you think you know what the person is going to say next, but you might be wrong! If you feel your mind wandering, change the position of your body and try to concentrate on the speaker’s words.
3. Let the speaker finish before you begin to talk. Speakers appreciate having the chance to say everything they would like to say without being interrupted. When you interrupt, it looks like you aren’t listening, even if you really are.
4. Let yourself finish listening before you begin to speak! You can’t really listen if you are busy thinking about what you want say next.
5. Listen for main ideas. The main ideas are the most important points the speaker wants to get across. They may be mentioned at the start or end of a talk, and repeated a number of times. Pay special attention to statements that begin with phrases such as “My point is…” or “The thing to remember is…”
6. Ask questions. If you are not sure you understand what the speaker has said, just ask. It is a good idea to repeat in your own words what the speaker said so that you can be sure your understanding is correct. For example, you might say, “When you said that no two zebras are alike, did you mean that the stripes are different on each one?”
7. Give feedback. Sit up straight and look directly at the speaker. Now and then, nod to show that you understand. At appropriate points you may also smile, frown, laugh, or be silent. These are all ways to let the speaker know that you are really listening. Remember, you listen with your face as well as your ears!

Thinking fast

Remember: time is on your side! Thoughts move about four times as fast as speech. With practice, while you are listening you will also be able to think about what you are hearing, really understand it, and give feedback to the speaker.

 

Feb. 25th, 2009 Club Evaluation & International Speech Contests

Join us for our Club Evaluation & International Speech Contests!

No, yours truly will not  be in it, however, I will be the one greeting you at the door!

I was contemplating this time to  be in our contest, however, I did not have enough time to prepare.  Next time!

1. What’s all this about speech contests?

In order to provide for people who enjoy competitive speaking,
and in order to showcase the best, Toastmasters clubs hold
speech contests as many as five times a year. Each contest
starts at the club level and works its way up through Area and
Division to the District. Three contests go on to Regional
and one goes on to the World Convention each August.

The contests are:

* Evaluation – 2 to 3 minutes in length.

A target speaker
gives a speech which all the evaluation contestants are to
evaluate. The contestants are taken from the room and given
five minutes to prepare their speeches and make notes. Then,
their notes are taken away and they are brought back into the
room one by one (at which time the contestant gets his notes
back) to deliver their oral evaluation of the target speech.
Since no contestant hears what another said about the target
speech, the judges can compare the analytical abilities of the
contestants. Goes as far as the Regional level in Regions 8;
the other Regions do not have it.
* International Speech – 5 to 7 minutes.

Any topic at all, so
long as it’s original. Can be funny, serious, whatever. It
should be the best speech you can give, and it must be
original. Did I mention that it must be original? Don’t do
what so many speakers do and crib at length from someone
else’s works and then expect that no one in the audience will
smell a rat. The reason this contest is called “International
Speech” instead of “General Speech” or “Miscellaneous Speech”
is because it’s the only one of the five contests that goes as
far as the World level. Each August, winners from the eight
Regions and the Overseas clubs (9 contestants in all) compete
at the World Convention in the World Championship of Public
Speaking.

2. How do you pick the winners?

Each contest has a set of rules which mandate originality and
lay down the procedures. If you go over your time limit by
thirty seconds, you’re eliminated. If you go UNDER your time
limit by thirty seconds, you’re eliminated — except in Table
Topics, where you must speak at least one minute, no less.
Out in the audience, there will  be a set of judges, scattered
among the audience, each with a points form that they use to
rate you against what a winning effort should be and how you
stack up against the others. There’s a different form for
each contest, since each contest involves different skills.

3. Who gets to compete?

Any member in good standing (i.e. you’ve got your dues paid)
can compete when the contests come around — except for
current District and International officers and candidates for
same — except for the International Speech Contest. To
compete in the International Speech Contest, you must have
given at least six manual speeches towards your CTM. This
requirement is intended to prevent professional speakers from
joining Toastmasters out of the blue solely to compete toward
the World Championship of Public Speaking. District and
International officers are barred so the judges won’t be
swayed by their titles.

4. When do the contests take place?

It varies from District to District. Some Districts have two
contests in the fall, one in the winter, and two in the
spring. Others have two in the fall, two in the winter, and
one in the spring. All that matters as far as Toastmasters
International is concerned is that all Districts must have
held their Evaluation, Humorous, and International Speech
contests by the time the Regional conferences roll around in
June.

5. What do I get if I win a contest?

At the club level, sometimes all you get is a handshake and
some applause. By the time you’ve gotten up to Division and
District levels, you’re getting some fairly impressive
trophies.

 

6. Hey, what about the Debate Contest or the Interpretive Reading
Contest or some other contest you didn’t mention?

Districts can hold whatever contests they want in addition to
the five sanctioned International contests listed above. However,
these vary from District to District and it would not be possible
to list all the various speech contests held throughout the world
of Toastmasters here in this FAQ.
See you there!
Jill Patrick
VP Public Relations
www.burrardtoastmasters.com

 

This was a great contest.

 WOW!

How many guests did we have! We had a full house.

Congratulations Rita for winning the Speech Contest! This is what Rita had to say in her winning speech that we should all remember:

 STOP!

• S- Special invitation
• T- Time
• O- Opportunity
• P- Purpose!

You have a special invitation to take your time to have the opportunity to figure out your purpose. REFLECT!

 Ok, now I remembered that without notes! AWESOME! Thanks Rita!

Also, Jason in his evaluation contest speech mentioned that when you are networking, giving a speech..

“Be comfortable as if you know everyone, dress like you know NO one!”

Great tip!

A great contest !

 Drinks and nachos socializing over at Smileys was great, too!

Jill