There seems to be a lot of confusion about active listening out there. At its best, I think the art of listening consists of a host of skills that can be used to encourage someone to talk about their passions/frustrations/troubles. It is a powerful way to help people talk through their own concerns, fears, reasoning, hidden assumptions, etc. I believe the purpose, the skills involved and the process itself have not always been described in a clear manner.
The purpose is to help the other person (not to sell them something they don't need, or to win an argument, or to change their minds about something). The skills are varied. The process requires lots of patience and discipline. Once we have a better understanding of these things, then we can work on improving the requisite skills.
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