Think of a time when you felt that someone didn’t listen to you—for example, on the job, at home, at the doctor’s office, or at a store where you shop. Your instructor will split the class into pairs of speakers and listeners. The speakers will share their stories. The listeners must try to recognize two things: 

(a) What the poor listener in the story did that demonstrated nonlistening and 

(b) What impact this had on the speaker’s feelings. The speakers and listeners then reverse roles. After this second round, the class compares notes to debrief. All ideas are collected to identify patterns of nonlistening behavior and its negative impact on the speakers.

Your Task. In pairs or individually, identify behavior that would reverse what happened in the stories told in class. Based on your insights, write an e-mail or memo that describes several principles of good listening illustrated with brief examples. You could end by concisely telling of an encounter that shows ideal active listening.