The very first thing that rich is at the listing is complex business that we are listen the way we listen because we learn to listen that way but most people have never really given careful thought to what kind of a listener they are. One of our approaches is to ask people to rate themselves as a listener. For example, we could ask you to rate yourself as a listener or your listeners to write themselves as a listener and there are many ways to do that. For example of we could give you a a scale of words from Superior to excellent to above-average to average two below average to Portillo's e a 7-point scale and we going to ask you to rate yourself overall as a listener which one of those words would be more descriptive of you as a listener andWe didn't take a scale of 0 to 100 and ask you on a scale of 0 to 100. How would you over all again rate yourself as a listener? Not at your best. At your works but in general overall and what we find is that most people want it never thought about that. They rate themselves as a bridge player or as a as a skier or as a musician or as of this or that how about they have never considered how do they rate as a listener? So when we talked about the reluctance of people to make a judgment about themselves as a listener what we find. They just have never really thought about it. Once they think about it. What we discover is that most people rate themselves in the very average category.Dial understand that at this stage. We haven't described listing. We haven't Define listing them provide any criteria. We're asking people to do that for themselves. And what we find there simply is that most people just have not given much thought. They don't have a lot of criteria to write themselves. And then we move on into more specific criteria base kinds of analysis. What are some of those specific examples? Can you give to people to prove to them or show them that they're not listening as well as it as they might well the very best method of showing people how well they listen to ask them to listen to something and then give them a test over what they have just listened to and there are a whole variety of ways to do that. There are some standardized examination of standardized tests that are rather lengthy and they try to take an hour to administer. But once people listen and are tested on what they listen to We then canShow them how they compare at the various grade level sofa talking about elementary children. We can show how they score compared to other Elementary children secondary the same up through the Collegiate level. The other thing that we can Cannon do do is to give people some very short little test the seminars that we run and the workshops that we run with business and industry and government agencies and organizations around the country. We usually don't have time to give the 1-hour long test a short test but the key to it very simply to ask people to listen to something and then immediately test them on one. What did they hear of what was said to what did they understand of what they heard 3D can they make proper Judgment of what they heard and understood for what did they retain and 5 are they able to respond based upon what they heard understood made by Ford?And retained that sounds like a lot of very complicated. But but actually it's very simple example and it's a classic example of a little test that was developed by my predecessor. Dr. Ralph Nichols. Go something like this. Is it less than 40 seconds long? But what we do is we challenged people to listen, like they've never listen before and the test goes something like this. Please have your mr. Gill pick up. Mr. McGrew of Amalgamated products at the airport at 8:30 a.m. Mr. Gossett was to have gone but he's sick cast make it ring. Mr. McGrew to our offices at 714 18th Street as I'll be an important meeting at 10 a.m. At the conclusion of this meeting. Mr. McGrew May advise. His boss is Stanley gross to buy our company. And that's the end of the message and you were laughing as I was reciting that but what did you hear? What didn't you hear? I did you quit somewhere along the line. Did you feel overwhelmed based on what you heard how much information are you able to make proper Judgment of Etc what we find very simply is that most people operate and that's a very short message. If you ask people to listen to a 10-minute long message. We find that most people operate and about to 50% efficiency level immediately. And then if you come back within 48 hours and then test them again, you find it that's dropped off another 50% down to a final efficiency factor of about 25% And we think of that is tragic factor because what we're talking about here is learned behavior. That although it's not generally taught her focused on with teaching in with focus. It can be improved if I can be substantially improved. What are some techniques tricks. If you will that people can use to be able to listen better short of taking one of the courses that you offer but one of the things I feel very strongly about is that people of course, I'm looking for the the quick fix the tricks give me the six little tips that I can use to be a better listener sort of the speed Lucy hour and 16 years. My predecessor dr. Nichols 32 years at the University Minnesota be what we've been working in the department of rhetoric in this topical area. We think it's the best tip. The first step in the best hip is that there is no quick-fix. There is no easy simple techniques are there are a number of things that people can do but I always preface that by saying I understand that if you don't place this on a good Firm Foundation, the quick techniques will lose what we will be lost a very very quickly probably the most important technique of all is the simple understanding that listening is the predominant activity that we engage in the predominant communication activity that we engage and day-in-and-day-out research. In fact, we're search for 1926 to the present day shows that we spend about 80% of our waking day engaged in activities of communication and that of that 80% of our waking hours spent in communication. If you take the total communication time, we spend nearly 50% of our communication. I'm engaging activity of listening. Secondly that not only is it a predominant activity. We haven't been taught analysis of educational institutions around the country show very clearly that listening is the neglected Harry we talked about that before we completed an 8-year study here in the state of Minnesota and discovered that probably less than 5% of the school's analyzed. We're doing any kind of instruction at all focusing on listening by the way. Just a quick side note up until 1978 the majors of literacy in this country were built around the competencies of writing reading and arithmetic the 1978 Amendment to the primary secondary Education Act added for the first time speaking and listening in 1978. So there are some subtle changes that are starting out there, but they're they're just beginning. Back to the the main question here. Not only do we engage and listeners are predominant activity. Not only is it not Todd. We also known as we've Illustrated most people do not listen as productively are effectively as a as they can would like to should Etc with great cost. We have all kinds of substantial cost that arises because of poor listening and the amounts to come the little simple things in business letters have to be retyped orders have to be reshaped the people don't mean when and where they're supposed to be in the family. We have problems relationships are destroyed. We have over three million divorces in this country was a communication is at the heart of many of those listening is a part is at the heart of many of those Peter gatien problems. We waste time productivity is down profitability is affected. People are injured killed, Maine. Etc lawsuits, can you contract many of these back specifically to the fact that people somebody sent a message but someone else didn't get it. They didn't understand it. They didn't make proper Judgment of it. They didn't respond to an appropriately Etc. So that that kind of thing in my opinion is the is at the heart of the first two were talking about complex business when you get into the the tip area. There are many things that we can tell listeners to do that will make them better one. Very simple one is what we call the plan to report concept. Another words, we teach people literally teach them and give them the practice the act of the exercise if you will that when they listen to somebody if they will plan and carry to the plant plant a report with their listening to to someone else specific person later on today. I'll do better to give you an example that a few weeks ago. I was working with the u.s. Army Corps of Engineers and at lunch time. There was a man big head was his name and I know nothing at all about locks and dams on the Mississippi River and so I asked to get I said tell me about the locks and dams here on the river. I said, I know nothing about them and as he started to tell me about them, I made a commitment to myself I'll plan to report if you will just share the information he was about to give me with my twelve-year-old son Scotty at dinner that evening and I can still tell you today big and told me that there are 26 locks and dams on the Mississippi River from Minnesota to New Orleans that the Facts are a hundred 10 ft wide by 6 ft long that the barges that come down. The river are 105 ft wide and 600 to 1,200 ft long what he was telling you these things as he told you these different figures do some of the memory of things that some people have suggested doing in their little ways of remembering things like a associating a particular phrase or someone's face that sort of thing with the with something else so that you have this whole association business lined up in your head how you remember those things go well for me that kind of thing does not work. I need to mrs. Bell free and I think of an addict and before I know what I'm calling her mrs. Attic that doesn't work for me. What works for me is just a simple aspect of I'm going to listen. I'm going to get it in the first place. I'm going to repeat it and want to share it with somebody and that plan to report that commitment for me allows me to 3 out more information that I would if I and it works for other people also that if we would not plan to report at dinner that evening I told my little boy I said Scott I said, let me tell you about some interesting people I met today. Let me tell you about the the locks and dams that that I learned about it. I knew absolutely nothing about that, but I still have some of that information today because the active list is an act that is much more complex and complicated in many ways than its counterpart the active reading and reading is locked in print. If I fall asleep if I have to take a break if I get angry if I become emotional if I don't understand it for some language that is new to me. I can set it aside and go and take care of all those things and come back and it's still there and listening. Of course you and I listen to is written on the wind is transient if we become emotional eyes. We will miss what's coming and we're in trouble if we don't understand if we're distracted if whatever interferes with the listening process generally speaking that always but generally speaking it's written on the wind and it's gone. Now there are some exceptions such as the taping of this program, perhaps the videotaping of certain television shows Etc. But for the most part, I would say 95% of what you and I will never listen to is written on the wind and saw the simple Act of planning to report. The essence of what you're listening to to someone else forces you to TuneIn differently and then secondly, the act of reporting is really an active repetition. UCI. Only reported that message to my son Scott. I also reported just a moment ago to you as I did. So of that information was more deeply embedded as we move along meaning for Samsung another tip that we suggested people very simply is the Indus is very complex and we won't do justice to it here and it's been a minute or two but relates to the taking of the good listeners that we see it have seen for thirty-some years. And by the way, the good listener today look pretty much like the good listings of yesteryear. No significant change in their characteristics the poor listeners of today. Also look like the poor listings of the past characteristically we see some some significant differences between the two but the good listeners that we see our note takers. They take notes. They adapter note taking system to the structural system of the speaker. And that doesn't mean much except to say that most speakers you and I will ever listen to fall somewhere on a scale of organized to unorganized and most speakers are very predictable. So they talk about speakers. I mean whether we're talking about he know the minister in church or the politicians that you listen to last night or the people at the caucus or the interview right here or the people that we talked to over the coffee cup at lunch most people are predictable and habitual and how they organize material to present the effective lister's our listeners who look for the central ideas. They look for the structural Arrangement patterns of the speakers that use that as they take note poor listener either one don't take notes or if they do take notes. They use their own system die regardless of the system at the speaker using and third if they take notes they take verbatim notes. We know that most speakers in this country speaking about a hundred and sixty-two 180 words per minute, which is a slow pace by the way. But nevertheless most note-takers can't take notes at that rate. So they fall behind very very quickly. 1/3 perhaps tip very simply a deals with distractions good listeners have analyzed what are the distractions that affect them as listeners internal and external poreless don't have the slightest idea as a consequence good listeners are in a position to if you will modify minimize overcome eradicate, etc. Those distractions good list. Try poreless early should report listings try to listen over the distractions and they die.