讓自己成爲一個善於傾聽的人

Question: Are You a Good Listener?

提問：你是個善於傾聽的人嗎？

Answer A: Yes

答案一：是

Answer B: No

答案二：否

Answer C: Sometimes

答案三：有時候是

The correct answer to the above question, for you and for me, is:

上述問題的正確答案是：“三：有時候是”，這是我的答案，興許也是你的答案。

If you think about your circle of friends, work associates and family members, you can almost certainly pick out one or more people among them who are generally not good listeners. They’re too busy listening to themselves or rushing around impatiently, or whatever. You have probably become accustomed to their weakness in this respect, whether you like it or not. If this person happens to be your boss, you’re in bad luck, but far from alone.

歷數身邊的朋友、同事和親戚，你肯定會毫不猶豫地從中挑選出一個甚至幾個不善傾聽的人。他們整天忙着自說自話、東奔西走或是其他事情。無論你是否喜歡，你可能早就對他們的這些缺點習以爲常。假如這個人恰好又是你的老闆，那你的運氣可真夠差的！不過，你絕不是唯一的倒黴蛋兒。

Equally, if you think hard, you can probably think of someone you know who is a very good listener. If you’re fortunate, that person is a good friend, loved one, close colleague, or mentor. If that person is your boss, then it’s equivalent to winning the Mark Six, and you are very lucky indeed.

同理，如果你使勁兒想想，肯定也能從認識的人裏找到好的聽衆。走運的話，這個人可能是你的好友、至愛、搭檔或者良師。如果碰巧這個人是你的頂頭上司，那你簡直是幸運透頂，不亞於中了六合彩。

All too often, we associate the benefits of good listening skills with achieving very specific outcomes, like following the boss’s orders (aimed at getting a job promotion, etc.), getting a good test score (aimed at gaining admission to a good school), completing a list of assigned tasks (e.g. doing the household errands in a timely manner, aimed at avoiding harsh words from the higher authorities).

太多的情況下，我們總是把善於傾聽的好處和實現極爲特定的目標直接掛鉤，比如對老闆唯命是從（目的是獲得晉升機會等）、提高考試成績（以便考取名校）、完成分配的各項任務（比如及時做完家務，免遭長輩訓斥）。

We tend to undervalue the importance of our listening skills as well as the scope of their potential application. We think of them as something pretty basic, which we mastered in our formal schooling, along with dictation, rote learning, studying for tests, obeying instructions, etc.

但我們低估了傾聽技巧的重要性，以及它潛在的適用範圍。我們誤以爲傾聽是最基本的技能，我們早在上學期間就通過聽寫、背書、備考、輔導等方式熟練地掌握了它。

This is a shame. Someone should have taught us that listening skills should be the focus of ongoing, lifetime learning and development, related to but separate from the life-long quest to improve our language and communication skills.

其實我們應該爲此感到臉紅。也應該有人提早地教會我們，傾聽技巧是終生學習和進步的核心，它與孜孜以求地提高語言能力和溝通技巧既有關聯，又相互獨立。

Think about the number of failures, misunderstandings, screw-ups, flare-ups, arguments and disputes which occur because two people or groups didn’t listen to each other effectively. We’re surrounded by this kind of outcome yet, all too often, we don’t analyze the root problem, or work on improvement steps.

想想兩個人或兩個團體由於不能做到彼此有效傾聽，曾經導致過多少失敗、誤會、擰巴、碰撞、爭論還有分歧。但即便類似的結果比比皆是，我們依舊不會分析問題的根源，或尋求改進的方式和步驟。

We still tend to treat listening skills the way we treat learning to walk or learning to ride a bicycle: we think that once we’ve acquired them, we’ve got it; we’re done, and ready to move on to the next thing. Wrong. The problem is that people and language are far more complex, varied and subtle than the roads and trails we travel on.

我們把學習傾聽的技巧等同於學走路或學騎車：以爲一旦學會，就可以牢固掌握，就可以開始做下一件事情了。錯！問題在於人種和語言的複雜性、多樣性及微妙性遠遠超過了我們行走或行駛的道路情況。

Apart from the fact that poor listening skills often erode effective dialogue between people, think about the upside potential. If we were able to consistently reduce routine misunderstandings in our conversations at home or at work by a factor of, say, 20-30%, there would be welcome dividends in efficiency, elimination of tiresome repetition and clarification, and just plain enhanced good vibes. What’s not to like?!

事實上，差勁的傾聽能力往往會降低對話效率，姑且拋開這個不談，讓我們從積極的方面着想。假如我們能致力於將家庭或辦公對話中常見的誤會減少20–30%，就能提高效率，消除耗時耗力的重複和澄清，獲得良性共鳴。何樂而不爲呢？！

If we’re intrigued and enticed by cutting our carbon footprint by 20-30% or more, why not get equally focused on cutting our “confusion footprint” by a similar measure? The world around us would also benefit from this.

假如我們醉心於減少20-30%的碳排放，爲什麼我們不能對降低同樣比例的“困惑”一視同仁呢？周遭的世界也會從中受益。

Often, the best talkers are the worst listeners. I have interrupted many glib, smooth-talking salespeople by asking how they could be so presumptuous as to try to sell me something without even asking about my needs. This is still a very common mistake.

最能說的人往往是最糟糕的聽衆。我曾打斷過許多口若懸河的推銷員，問他們爲什麼不事先了解我的需求，就武斷地向我兜售產品。直到現在，這仍然是一個常見的錯誤。

Effective listening relies on the ears, in partnership with the mouth. Asking is to listening as yin is to yang.

有效傾聽不僅要依靠耳朵，還需要嘴巴的配合。提問之於傾聽，就如同陰陽的相伴相生。

Most of us need to develop our patience in the context of listening. The older we get the more challenging this is, because we tend to think that our great, deep body of experience entitles us to offer advice on a wide gamut of questions and issues, solicited or otherwise, especially to people younger than us.

我們大多數人都需要培養傾聽過程中的耐心。年紀越大，就越不容易做到這一點。因爲我們都自認爲積累了豐富的經驗，有資格對各種問題指手畫腳，特別是替年輕人指點迷津，也不管人家是不是樂於請教。

If someone confides in us about something, we tend to assume they are seeking our advice. Maybe not. Maybe they just want a receptive ear and a supportive smile. That’s part of the challenge of listening — determining when the speaker wants a response, or advice, or feedback, and when they’re just looking for a good listen. To figure that out, sometimes we need to ask, which is an integral part of the listening process.

如果有人向我們袒露心聲，我們就以爲對方是在尋求建議。事實也許並非如此，他們需要的可能只是傾聽的耳朵和支持的微笑。這也是傾聽的難題之一——判斷講話者何時需要答覆、建議、反饋，何時又只需要傾聽。爲了做出判斷，我們有時需要發問，這也是傾聽的組成部分。

What are you doing later today? Why not go out of your way to do a better job of listening to somebody? If needs be, raise your question to statement ratio, to ensure you get to the heart of what they are trying to say.

今天你還有什麼事情要做？爲什麼不好好地聽某人說說話？如果有必要，問個問題，確保你明白對方講話的實質。

It just might do you — and them — some good.

這可能會對你——還有講話的人——有所幫助。