Monday, April 27, 2009
Nurturing Relationships: Be Genuinely Interested in People
"For how knoweth a man the master who he has not served,
and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from
the thoughts and intents of his heart?"
Mosiah 5:13
Self Reflection:
Am I genuinely listening to others? Am I planning what I will say/do while others are speaking to me? Do I remember what they tell me? How can I better demonstrate that I care about what is going on in their lives?
Challenge:
Pick a relationship that is in need of attention. For one week, practice using skills like asking questions, tuning in with all your attention, paraphrasing what the speaker says, using a good amount of eye contact and letting go of your own agenda. Record how this experience improved your relationship.
I think this is a great subject to reflect on. Are we sincere when we ask someone, "How are you?" Are we genuinely interested in their world? Do we take the time to listen? Some times I just go through the motions, of saying that but while the other person replies I'm thinking of a million other things I need to do at that moment of conversation. This is something that I will definitely be working on.
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4 comments:
The self reflection paragraph struck me - I often find myself thinking about what I will say next when someone else is still talking. Shame on me and I AM going to work on it this week!
I'm right there with you!! I'll be adding this to my day!! And I actually think that if I put my heart in this, I'll learn to love those around me even more.
Thanks for the challenge.
Have a good day.
Sandra
This is a great idea! This is something I should be working on.
I do this too, that passing quick, "Hey how are you?" without even slowing down to hear a response. I've got to work on that.
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