We all need to know that the other party is listening to us--especially clients!

The guys that wrote the book, The Trusted Advisor, have a chapter dedicated to listening.  They talk about three ways to demonstrate supportive and active listening.  I thought they were worth sharing.

• Reflective Listening - Demonstrates that the listener is soaking it in and gets it.  "What I hear you saying is..."
• Supportive Listening - Demonstrates empathy.  The listener not only gets it, but understands your point of view and how you feel about it.  "Wow, that must be very difficult.  What are the implications of that?"
• Listening for Possibility - Demonstrates insight and suggests that the listener has some alternatives.  "So, what might you do to resolve it?"

The authors go on to say that this kind of active listening draws out the speaker even more and lets him/her tell the whole story.