Great Leaders Listen: How Good Communication is Rooted in Listening Rather Than Speaking

Hey, LinkedIn! ????

The holidays are right around the corner, which puts us definitively in soup season.

And a good soup is like a good newsletter—full of all your favorites and like a little escape from what can be an otherwise stressful time of year.

This month’s newsletter is full of food for thought. (See what we did there?)

Let’s get right into it!

Here are some of your favorites from the past month:

Nobody becomes a great leader by accident.

The best leaders make the effort to learn and grow. Look at any great leader, and you’ll see the same characteristics listed above.

But did you notice the really cool thing about those traits? Great leaders aren’t described by adjectives. They're described by verbs. Leaders are doers. And they do things for and with their teams.

And the best leaders work for the betterment of their teams.

???? Empathy and communication skills require action, and they work well together. It's really hard to empathize with your employees if you don’t communicate with them.

And remember, empathy is different than sympathy. Empathy is the action of understanding a person’s situation and being sensitive to their feelings, thoughts and experiences.

When it comes to communication, there are a few ways to effectively communicate:

1?? Start by listening to hear (not to reply).

2?? Follow up with questions for understanding.

3?? Clearly state what you mean. To be clear is to be kind, so say what you mean and mean what you say.

Simon Sinek understands a thing or two about business leadership.

Here’s what he had to say about listening and how it can help your company:

?? Honest listening is critical for workplace health. When leaders talk, they expect their employees to listen.

And, as any good leader knows . . . listening is a two-way street.

A healthy workplace values honest and clear communication. Even though we may not always like what we hear, healthy conflict helps people grow and become the leaders and employees everyone wants them to be.

As business and HR leaders, you’ve spent a lot of time interviewing candidates. You’ve learned how to listen and ask important questions. So, this is what we want to know:

?? What’s your favorite question to ask in an interview?

Share your answer below in the comments!

Workplace culture has gone through the ringer over the last few years. Companies have dealt with remote work, hybrid scheduling, quiet quitting, return-to-office orders, layoffs and other obstacles.

In other words, it’s been rough. ????

But through it all, you’ve found ways to engage employees and implement helpful retention strategies. Whether you’re looking for help or just a refresher course on retention, here are some strategies you can start implementing right away:

1.???? Prioritize internal hires over external hires.

2.???? Offer competitive pay.

3.???? Provide life-changing benefits.

4.???? Show recognition.

5.???? Support the work environment.

6.???? Conduct stay interviews.

7.???? Build trust.

???? These strategies work because they focus on relationships and culture within your company. As a leader, you have the power to bring new things to your company that can change an employee’s life.

Give these strategies a try and let us know which one is your favorite.

?? We’re so grateful when you comment or share our content.

Here’s what your fellow business leaders are saying:

·????? We had a great time seeing some of you at the Ariat Dirt World Summit this month in Houston, Texas! We look forward to seeing more of y'all!

·????? Dr. John Delony's new #1 national bestseller, Building a Non-Anxious Life, came out earlier this month! Order your copy here: https://ter.li/h62as2

·????? The success of your business relies on retaining your top talent. Here are seven retention strategies you can use right away.

·????? Learn how to create a compensation plan that helps you retain employees and attract new talent.

·????? Read three ways you can fix employee absenteeism in your business.

·????? Stay up-to-date with our latest HR educational videos by?subscribing to our YouTube Channel .

·????? Lead your business the Ramsey way with?EntreLeadership .

·????? Interested in joining our team??Check out our openings!

Well, that’s all we have for this month. We hope you learned something new and enjoyed the extra content.

See you next month!