Remember there is a difference between hearing and listening. Hearing is simply taking in sounds without necessarily any interpretation. Listening uses ears and your mind as you make meaning from what you heard. Deep listening is listening with the heart. Our routines are basically habits, right? Doing things as we always do them can be as comfortable as slipping into a pair of old shoes. But a new pair of shoes draws your attention to your feet and makes you walk funny until you break them in, and they adapt to your stride.
Intentional listening can like that new pair of shoes. It can draw you in a different direction as you step out of your routine responses and communicate in a new way. Deep listening means listening with all of your senses and not just your ears. Deep, intentional listening tunes you into the true meaning that is hiding behind the words.
Transform is a fancy word for change. Maybe you are satisfied with where you are and how you listen. However, a study with experienced critical care nurses at a New Orleans area hospital revealed that even something as simple as asking a question can lead to change for both the nurse and the patient.
Are you ready?
It all begins with a question.