Effective Listening in Military

Effective listening is very important in the military; it is required in everything soldiers do. Many often confuse hearing and listening, thinking they are the same, but they are not. In the military, effective listening could possibly save your life. Effective listening is beneficial for leadership as well, by allowing your soldiers to feel like you hear them and matter by you. Being in leadership also means being judge free and not throwing your own views and beliefs onto your subordinates.

Effective listening is import when it comes to needing to know when and where to be. In the military, a soldier sometimes has to conduct dangerous missions in and outside of the United States. This would require all soldiers to know when and where to be. Without effectively listening to the important information given, a soldier may copy down the wrong SP time or location. Something so minuet as this could possibly cause the soldier his life or maybe their entire squad.

Get quality help now

RhizMan

Verified writer

Proficient in: Listening

4.9 (247)

“ Rhizman is absolutely amazing at what he does . I highly recommend him if you need an assignment done ”

+84 relevant experts are online

Hire writer

Away to ensure are effectively listening to important information, it would be wise to ask them to summarize or paraphrase any information that put out. Effective listening is not only for a soldier to be in a position to follow orders, but it is also beneficial for leaders as well.

Once you start implementing effective listening, you can put those skills into practice to improve your leadership skills. Effective listening, according to Fulwiler, is “a critical component of being a transformational leader, in which you focus on not just the task, but also the person doing the work.

Building positive relations is an important part of leadership, and listening is a critical part of building good relationships. Actively listening to others lets them know that you are interested in their needs, as well as what they are trying to say. When people feel that you care about them, it will make them more likely to follow your leadership. Engage yourself in matters important to your soldiers. When they share their opinions, ask questions and encourage them to elaborate and expand upon their perspectives. When you engage yourself more actively, hold yourself accountable and follow-up with your soldiers, they will know that you are listening, paying attention and attempting to understand what matters most to them. In leadership, effective listening could also mean understanding nonverbal ques. There are times a soldier may not verbally inform anyone that something personal is going on with him or her, but knowing your soldiers, you would be able to tell by the way one may behave. When a normally happy social able soldier becomes down and secluded, that could be an indicator that something is going wrong.

Good leadership also knowing your soldiers and being empathetic to any issues that could possibly surface. As a soldier being in a leadership position your soldiers would need to feel heard and, empathy is a powerful display of listening. Many leaders avoid emotional interactions, but the best leaders know how to empathize and make themselves approachable to those who need attention.

While being in leadership, it would be important not to judge soldiers on who they are, but rather their performance. This is a time where many individuals are coming out by publicly owning their sexuality and personal political views that may not be in favor to your own. Being in a leadership position, your soldiers would need to know their superior would not judge them and have a safe and hostile free work environment to work in.

In conclusion, effective listening is very important in the military; it is required in everything soldiers do. While many often confuse hearing and listening, you should now know the difference. In the military, effective listening could possibly save your life. As stated, effective listening is beneficial for leadership as well, by allowing your soldiers to feel like you hear them and matter by you. Being in leadership also means being judge-free and not throwing your own views and beliefs onto your subordinates.