Monastic Listening

We hear a lot these days about being good listeners. Listening is often identified as an essential leadership skill. It is true that listening is more than merely preparing to say something more.

Listening well demands we pay attention to different levels of meaning. Some people listen to the words we speak, some listen to a level of meaning deeper than our words. Some listeners are able to listen to what we mean while also recognizing meaning within themselves.

Monks are some of the best listeners I know. They seem to listen to various, deepening levels of meaning at the same time.

Listening well is rarely a natural gift. It is not magic. We become able to listen well because we practice the skills it requires. We learn to listen well by listening, taking our time and putting in the effort.

One first step to becoming a good listener is listening to ourselves well.

The monks I know tend to understand it is helpful to begin with our selves. It is difficult to know other people more than superficially when we do not know ourselves well. It is impossible to lead other people if we do not first lead ourselves honestly. It is a real challenge to listen to other people in any depth unless we first practice listening to ourselves.

It is helpful to set aside some time, even five minutes, to practice listening each day. We are wise to set aside what distracts us and commit ourselves to learning to listen. Many people feel uncomfortable at first, usually because we have forgotten how to listen well.

We begin to practice listening to ourselves and may be surprised by what we hear.

When will you practice listening each day?

How will you practice monastic listening today?

[Image by eosmay]