BOSS MANAGEMENT SPECIAL ..................5 WAYS TO Deal With A Boss With Poor Listening Skil

5 WAYS TO Deal With A Boss  With Poor Listening Skill

Listening is a skill and so is making people listen to you. Poor listening skill hampers communication at the workplace, more so if it is the boss. ET's Rica Bhattacharyya talks to HR experts on how to deal with a boss who apparently is a poor listener.

1 Use Attention Grabbers

Leaders typically experience cognitive load through the excessive information that comes their way. They, therefore, tend to apply heuristics to perceive information. “To make sure information gets through to them, it is important to call attention through using attention grabbers,“ said Nishchae Suri, partner, people and change, at KPMG in India. “While striking a conversation with your boss, set the context and your expectation at the very beginning. This would seize their attention to the rest of the conversation,“ said Sudhir Dhar, director of human resources at Motilal Oswal Financial Services.

2 Identify Primary Motivators

It is important to understand what drives a leader, in order to put forth communication accordingly.“Knowing their `why' can help prime information to align with their concerns and business agendas,“ said Suri of KPMG. Abhishek Kumar, assistant professor, BIM Trichy, said, “Find his interest areas and begin your argument with one of those areas.“

3 Summarise Post Discussion

“To ensure a common understanding, it may be helpful to summarise with key points in a clear and concise manner,“ said Suri. Poor listeners are likely to miss out on the key points of discussion, said Dhar.

4 Focus On Key Points

“Because leaders tend to skim through information, it is important to put the most relevant information at the very beginning,“ Suri said.

5 Seek Feedback & Follow Up

In discussions where you want to share a new idea or suggestion, or some important project or the challenges, mention at the opening of your conversation that you would require hisher input or feedback. “Your boss will pay attention and listen keenly since he needs to give suggestion or feedback towards the end,“ said Dhar.Also, because of the number of to-dos on any leaders' plate, it is easy to forget some action points. “Following up on email post a discussion makes communication act as a reminder and can refresh memory around key points,“ said Suri.

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