Listening is a skill that is highly underrated but when we actively listen it becomes our armor which works for our success at all places.
The difference between Hearing & Listening is stated below:
Hearing is just the process by which the body converts variations in the pressures around you into sounds. There are the following three parts of this process:
- The outer ear – the outer ear is the flap of skin on the sides of your head. People can see that the main job is to collect sound.
- The middle ear – The main job of this part of the ear is to take these sound waves and turn them into vibrations that are delivered to the inner ear.
- The inner ear – the inner ear is filled with a liquid that is set into motion, by these vibrations.
The above are the technical details of hearing. Now let us understand the difference between listening and hearing. These are two different things.
- Hearing is to perceive or to have sensation or sound; to possess or exercise the faculty of audition of which the specific organ is the ear.
- Listening is to hear attentively: to give ear to: to pay attention to a person speaking or what is being said. The subject of listening is a process that needs active participation. The outcome of this are deliberate and active behavior.
Further while hearing is a passive, reflexive, almost an automatic response; listening is a chosen and deliberate action to assimilate what has been said. The average person is said to remember about half of what they hear immediately after words, but this goes down as low as ten percent after three hours. This tells you that the skill of listening is not a natural ability. It is a skill that has to be learnt and practiced. It is a skill which gives you power to influence people and negotiate effectively.
Blog is written by Vikram Kakri.
