How can you demonstrate your ability to listen effectively in a startup development role?

My best advice on this is to rephrase what the client said to you, so that you understand. Use the formula: "Is this what you mean? [Rephrase what they have told you]" This keeps you engaged and listening in the conversation, since you have to be able to summarize what the other person says.

Listening well means read well the market, and its stakeholders, understanding the signals that show how your startup offering is resonating with it. Some techniques when interviewing customers and others: 1. Start with open questions such as "How do you feel about x?" or "Tell me about your journey on x." 2. Repeat the last sentence your counterpart just said, transforming it in a following-up question. 3. Try not to direct the answers. A bad practice would be asking things like "Don't you agree that X, Y and Z?" And, of course, as a good listener, listen more than you talk.

Listen to the customers, who will help you shape indefintely your product / services. This is particularly difficult with internet products, because though you have tons of metrics and kpis, you don′t see phisically your customers. Call them. Listening employees is as well very important as they might bring your customer views. Encourage a corporate culture based on listening customers.

I believe showing empathy and respect for others' perspectives, even if I disagree with them, is the most valuable technique. Being open to hearing different points of view and trying to understand it helps me a lot to find the best solution. It also means being a team player and helps to create a trustful environment which is the key factor for startup success.

The playback is great example of demonstrating you're more engaged with what the person is saying, than with waiting for your turn to talk. It sounds like this, "Let me play that back to you, because what I hearing is ......"

We can draw inspiration from the words of Simon Sinek: "People don't buy what you do; they buy why you do it." This emphasizes the significance of empathy when dealing with investors and customers. Understanding their motivations and needs is crucial, and curiosity helps uncover the 'why' behind their actions and decisions.

Being an empath not only have effects on other but effects on your overall happiness & mindset! So, cultivate this great skill & quality in yourself!

In my experience, listening with empathy and curiosity is key the best way to be open and authentic when building relationships, both with collegues and investors.

Start the process by taking the time to understand who you are working with. Build time in the process for people to explain thier professional stories, how they got there and why there are there.

Curiosity lies in the "eyes of the beholder" and not in the object or your interlocutor. Scientific curiosity is intelligence - hunger for information.

My top tip to get feedback and insights that you can act on: Ask for clarification. Use the formula: "Do I understand you correctly [rephrase the feedback you got]? Is there anything you want to add?" You will gather much more detailed and actionable feedback with this formula.

How exactly do you listen for feedback? The first step is to be present & listen calmly & do not react to what the other person is saying, but respond & then speak! This will improve your skills 100x

I've found that when taking on feedback, simply taking a breath and pausing before a response is a great way to find space in the conversation to respond positively and productively.

Make sure there is a common space, tool, method for collecting the feedback in an open and sharable space. This sounds basic, but so much of the best early conversation is lost in the veolocity of a new idea.

Not always do people know the real reason they give their feedback. No matter their conviction. That's where your work, as a detective, starts.

Steve Jobs once famously said, "Innovation comes from people meeting up in the hallways or calling each other at 10:30 at night with a new idea." Diverse perspectives drive innovation. Embracing different viewpoints, even when it leads to disagreements, often sparks groundbreaking ideas. Listening to diverse voices is like the 'hallway meetings' within a startup.

For startup founders it is easy to get confirmation bias. Take some time every month (put it on your calendar) and be uncomfortable. Actively seek out people who do not agree with you all the time. Be humble and ask for their perspectives. You will gain two things: A diverse 360 perspective of your solution. And you will crate a thicker skin in your startup role.

As with any--any--investment thesis, diversity is hugely important for generating new ideas, feedback and challenge ourselves, our assumptions, our biases.

Create different venues to engage. Monday morning in the boardroom is going to get as much diversity as it sounds it might. Mix people, spaces, environments. Intentionaly choose unusual spaces, unusual environments, add unusual and unexpected contributors.

It's important to track how the difference was born - and not just take the different opinion as intrinsic. This way you figure out what matters and can later simulate and predict different views in your mind.

Listening to yourself is perhaps the most underrated skill, though it is one of the most important ones for any founder. The burnout challenge, the gut instinct, the sixth sense; there are a number of ways in which your mind and body are telling you what to do. In the words of Bryce Courtenay - Always listen to yourself... it is better to be wrong than simply follow convention.

How to become aware of your personal ticks, mannerisms etc. 1. You can record yourself when pitching, and then review the video (takes a lot of time, but it will help you develop stage presence fast) 2. Ask a trusted advisor/friend to take note of how you act in different situations.

Words matter. Be conscious of our word choices and their impact. Reduce and remove all the qualifying words around a thought - be direct, clear and concise.

I love the idea of leaving notes for your future self. Understanding your weaknesses is important, but building and developing your strengths is 100% more important. So remember to listen to your positive side and invest in developing it as much as possible.

Listening to yourself doesn't just mean finding out the "why". Above all, it means understanding the "who" behind the "why". What gifts do you have? What do you stand for? WHO ARE YOU? Only when you have found out who you ARE, you will find your "Why", not before. So sorry, @simon sinek, unfortunately I have to extend your golden circle inwards ??

One of the key challenges of a startup is lack of structure because everyone is doing a little bit of everything. One way to add value to listening is documenting and making transparent what was decided and who is responsible for what and when it needs to get done. Any discussion that does not result in a clear concise communication with priorities and responsibilities is as if the discussion never happened.

There are multiple factors to be considered while listening to the startups. A startup is usually less experienced with less exposure of visualizing the long term impact of its idea. Being a good listener, along with all other parameters, we need to understand the reality and convey its long term vision, ground realities, and overall outcome of the venture. Many startups ignore the part of upcoming challenges while entering a market which should be discussed by mentors comprehensively.

Seek to understand before being understood. Certainly an entrepreneur is enthusiastic about their venture. It's natural then that an entrepreneur will want to share that enthusiasm with everyone. But, when you're talking, you're not learning. You're just hearing what you already know. Listening and hearing the perspective of others is how entrepreneurs can get their best education. Good listening relies on good interviewing skills. Before sharing your story, listen to the other's story. Discover who you're talking with. Uncover their motivations and super powers. Now, you're having a real conversation not just a pitch. Personally, I lean into a conversation. Whereas, I run away from a pitch. Venture With Vision ??

To expand on this section, I'd like to mention the book "The Innovator's Dilemma" by Clayton Christensen. Christensen's work is a valuable resource for startups as it discusses the challenges of maintaining innovation within an organization. Startups should consider this when embracing change and adapting to evolving markets.

In my experience fostering effective communication within a team, I've found the following principles to be crucial: Never interrupt anyone while discussing. Ask and gather team feedback based on events, product status, or milestones. Establish one-on-one meetings every month. Sit beside a team member, discuss, and take notes if necessary. Keep your ideas and solutions in mind, and let everyone participate and receive credit.