Great leadership has great listening at its core.
Great listening must include clarifying all that is heard.
There are typically layers (think onion) in a conversation and the words spoken are only one of many layers. A leader with excellent communication skills is going to be ahead of the game by constantly seeking to peel back the layers throughout the conversation.
In its infant stage, clarifying may come across a bit more like an interrogation. As we practice and get comfortable using various phrases and questions, the layer-peeling becomes much more natural and much less obvious.
The next time you are in a situation where there would be value in hearing and understanding more, consider trying out one or more of these. You will likely be surprised and pleased at the outcome!
Practical phrases & questions to use when you need to hear more:
… tell me more about …
Help me understand …
When you say x, what specifically were you thinking or referring to?
What else could you tell me about that?
Could you say that in a different way?
Did I hear you correctly when you said … ?
Pick one of these and challenge yourself to use it in the next 6 hours. Person, location, conversation topic doesn’t matter! The goal is to begin being more aware of the need to clarify and actually taking a step in doing so.
Go lead well by peeling back those layers.
Your future self will thank you very much!