A lot of people don’t realize there’s a difference between hearing and listening. Listening means you’re actively engaged in paying attention to what the other person is saying, while hearing means that you simply heard the other person’s voice through your ears but didn’t process what they said into information you can use to your advantage. For example, if you walk into a room with someone talking and all you do is hear them instead of listening to them, it can be difficult to hold an actual conversation because both parties will be frustrated by not being heard.




The definition of hearing
to perceive sounds with one or both ears. The definition of listening: to give close attention to sound; have knowledge of from hearing. Communication is a fundamental human need, but most people don’t know how to communicate effectively, which means we do more hearing than listening. For effective communication, it is important to understand when you are communicating verbally and when you are doing so non-verbally—as each has different social contexts and can be easily misinterpreted.

5 ways we listen (and don't)
1. We listen when it’s convenient for us. 2. We often interrupt others, changing their train of thought before they have time to finish. 3. We change topic within seconds, eager to move on to something else—even though we’re talking with someone we like and respect. 4. In everyday situations, people are so busy thinking about what they want to say next that they don’t really listen to what someone else is saying—they only hear words coming out of their mouths . 5. When someone has finished speaking, we often ignore them while we reflect on what we want to say in response rather than simply hearing what they said with an open mind first.

3 ways we hear (and don't)
1. We Hear What We Think. If we have an opinion on something, we hear what we think our response should be, not what someone else is saying. 2. We Hear It Only Once. This means that if you repeat yourself three times to get your point across, you've got a 50-50 shot at being heard; with anything more than that, you may as well be talking to yourself (or one other person). 3. We Hear Ourselves Over Other People—Even When They're Talking Loudly . To prevent us from interrupting them (overhearing ourselves), we tend to cut people off even when they're screaming at us.

How to be a good listener
In our culture, we’re told to communicate with words. We focus on how to speak well—how to persuade, how to sell ourselves and our ideas—but we forget that listening is just as important as speaking. If you have something worth saying, learn how to listen so you can share your idea in a meaningful way. Good listeners are empathetic, they’re approachable, and they use their words thoughtfully and effectively when they do speak up. Whether you’re in your professional life or your personal life, good listening is one of those skills that takes some practice but will always be worthwhile. When it comes down to it: Communication isn't just about saying things—it's about hearing what others have to say too.

How to be a good speaker
Understand that your audience is paying attention to you because they want to learn something. They don’t just need information; they need insight, advice, inspiration—and most of all, help. No matter how brilliant your ideas are or how compelling your data set is, you won’t connect with your audience unless you’re able to strike a chord with them. That means telling stories in an engaging way (not simply reciting facts) and putting it all into some type of framework for them to connect with on their level. You also have to make eye contact, have good body language and be aware of what’s going on in front of you as well as what may be happening behind you. But most importantly: Listen!

hearing and listening journey
Listening is more than just hearing. When we listen to someone, we're giving them our full attention and providing verbal feedback like yes or uh-huh. This level of listening is an active process that requires us to be engaged with what someone is saying. It also means being quiet long enough for them to complete their thought so that you can comprehend it all before adding your two cents. You may want to jump in every now and then, but remember: There's no rush! The goal is understanding each other—and that takes time.

major difference between hearing and listening
hearing is passive, listening is active. When you hear, you are absorbing sound waves through your ear. You don’t really do anything; they just wash over you. When you listen, on the other hand, you direct your attention toward sound and selectively listen to specific parts of it by choosing where to focus your attention. A useful analogy might be that hearing is like sitting in a theater while listening is like sitting in front of an orchestra: your role changes from spectator to participant. When we don’t make an effort to tune into what others are saying—or if we’re not intentional about paying attention—we miss important details or misunderstand others’ points.

lot of difference between listening and hearing
If you’re not really listening, chances are good that you aren’t actually hearing what your counterpart is saying. Sure, it seems like something as simple as hearing or listening can be used interchangeably in many instances; however, they aren’t exactly synonyms—in fact, they refer to two different ways of communicating with someone else. For example, let’s say you’re speaking with someone who has a habit of not finishing their sentences or rushing ahead too quickly to get their point across; chances are pretty good that they simply haven't taken the time to hear your perspective yet.

are you hearing or listening
It’s easy to confuse hearing with listening. They both seem like such simple actions, right? Well yes, they are. If you are facing someone and your ears are uncovered then you are hearing. But if your ears are covered, or if there is more than one person talking around you, or if they don’t speak clearly—if all these things happen at once—then it becomes much harder to tell what’s being said. So when someone says I was just trying to listen! that may be true but also can mean that they weren’t actually listening either!