Leading by Listening
One of my favorite TV shows is Fraiser. I just watched another episode where Frasier, the talk show host, gets the wrath of the Seattleites when he suggested a caller leave this dreary and gloomy city if she wants to be happy. Of course, this was late December in Seattle so no one is contesting the fact.
Why is this context important for “listening”?
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Frasier’s theme is “I am listening!”. However, in this episode, he will spend the entire next show with angry callers asking him to apologize. Being a psychiatrist, we believe he will apologize quickly as he has offended many in the city. Right, No! Obviously this is a sitcom, so they move it along until he “listens”!
Can you lead without “listening”?
If there is a single thing I keep coming back to in my job (managing software professionals) is that we “leaders” should make it a priority to listen. I am not talking about listening to what you like and tuning out when you don’t like what you hear!
It's about intentional listening! Good, bad, or ugly… Why? It's the first and easiest thing you can do to frame your opinions, thoughts without pride or prejudice.
So, leaders! let’s listen!
