by Brean Schell

Created on: May 06, 2009   Last Updated: May 07, 2009

People who feel important are happier than those who don't. Happy people are productive, generous, more lenient people too. So whether you're the worker or the queen bee, it will always benefit you if the people you work with are happy. The easiest way to make people happy is to listen to them.

By listening to a person, you are actively and noticeably giving them your attention, thereby making them important to you, and they will feel happier because you deem them worthy of your attention. The effect is normally subconscious but it is significant in affecting the way that person views you on a personal and professional level. When a person feels important, they feel more comfortable, so if they have a problem, a question, or need help, they are more likely to approach you, thereby giving you more and more authority and influence. And influence is never bad in a work environment.

Listening is not just hearing; it is an active, involved and conscious task that takes effort and focus. Not everyone has the skills it takes to listen effectively, but everyone does have the ability to learn those skills. Those skills are listed below, with an explanation and purpose for your benefit.

1. Only listen, nothing else. Most people are in the habit of thinking about their response while the other person is still talking. Don't do this; it takes away your focus from what is being said, and you might miss their point entirely, rendering the conversation a complete waste of time. Actively listen to everything the other person says, don't think about what you want to say, think about what's being said.

2. Focus all your attention on the person speaking and don't try to multitask. Like thinking about your responses, if you try to split your focus between two or more tasks, they all suffer in some way or another. Again, you might miss details, or even the whole point of the conversation if you're not careful. Also, focusing your attention on the speaker gives them a greater feeling of importance, and it also means that they'll give you their focus as well.

3. If the conversation is important, paraphrase or repeat the parts you think are most important, to make sure you get it right. There's nothing worse than only understanding half a task and making everyone's day a little harder. This will show that you take your job (or relationship) seriously, and that you want to do your best. It also shows that you take whoever is speaking to you seriously, and they will feel more

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