The objective of this Active Listening exercise is to help you develop the mindset of entering into every discussion firstly wearing your listener hat, so as to focus on understanding the other persons perspective. Can active listening skills even work through text conversations? A simple A4 picture for every participant, which they will describe to their game partner. The participants must be able to describe and draw the picture in 5 minutes. This game is played in pairs or small groups. Why? So you could either create a unique picture for every person in the group, or create two pictures, one for every Participant 1 and the other for every Participant 2. a family member, a friend, or a work colleague). This worksheet lists some small rewards, subtle but powerful nonverbal gestures that the therapist can use to let their client know that they hear them and are following along. Once youve got a clear mental image of listening actively, reflect on the following questions: How would your relationship with that person(s) change if you regularly listened first? A conversation of this kind can be quite absorbing. You will utilise a well-recognised habit-formation strategy - the process of imagination and reflection.' Then they will swap roles for another 5 minutes with a new picture. Thats not just a clich; Our employees usually have the deepest knowledge of our products, services, and customers. Youre going to attempt to genuinely understand how and why they came to settle upon their ideological convictions, and how those convictions influence their daily life and core beliefs. Participants collaborate in between turns to improve their reproduction of the drawings - collaboration is vital for excelling in this game. Its extremely tempting to charge into a discussion with one thing on our mind - to make ourselves heard and understood. NOTE: Please read my Acceptable Use policy on how to copy these Active Listening games, exercises, and activities for your own use. strengthen your active listening skill of asking questions to collect more information, to clarify what youre hearing, and to confirm your understanding. For more depth on seeking to understand other people, see the article titled Want to Avoid Poor Discussions? For counselors in training, it is important to practice active listening with a partner. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Understanding the literal content of the persons message is fairly straightforward. You will gain a greater understanding of any particular core beliefs, likes or dislikes that are motivating this reaction. Each round, one player takes a turn describing an item for other participants to draw one shape or line at a time. When practicing active listening, practitioners should also self-monitor for judgments that might come up while the person is speaking. One person is nominated as the noise-maker and another person is nominated as the speaker. Now imagine yourself harnessing those emotions. 1) How many animals did Moses take onto the ark? Effects of a training model on active listening skills of post-RN students. Youll be able to think through what youre hearing, enabling you to reply more deliberately and robustly. For each of those strong emotions, write down answers to these questions: What did they say that triggered that emotion?, Was it triggered by any of their non-verbal gestures or expressions?. Listen and Repeat. Active listening is what makes someone a truly gifted communicator. They will need to have an excellent attention span and honed empathic abilities. The only rule is that Participant 2 must not see the picture (or a photo of the picture). The worksheet invites the practitioner to listen to a five-minute segment of their session and see how often they were using these nonverbal cues. Thank you so much for providing this article. If your team fancies some fresh air, this will work well outdoors. https://positivepsychology.com/communication-activities-adults-students/, www.gordontraining.com/free-workplace-articles/active-listening/, www.goodlisteningskills.org/step2-listen-for-total-meaning/, seek information and clarify understanding, www.goodlisteningskills.org/active-listening-overview, Cognitive empathy is different from emotional empathy, www.goodlisteningskills.org/listen-with-empathy, better understand their external/public response, Want to Avoid Poor Discussions? These worksheets also provides an interactive way to assist clients. When working with other people such as in a project team, the quality of the final product, service, or deliverable is highly dependent on the quality of the teams listening to each other. This is a fun game in . Built with love in the Netherlands. While it is possible to learn it simply by reading, its always helpful to see it in action and practice with other people. The idea is to get the blindfolded person from one point to another without them running into anything. Active listening in written online communication-a case study in a course on soft skills for computer scientists. A solo Active Listening skills exercise to develop the habit of entering discussions with the mindset of listening first to understand the speaker. Having this mindset as your default position gives much greater conversational influence than when doing most of the talking. Any of these responses may lead to defensiveness, distrust, or shutting down. This platform is an active listening powerhouse. We are all social beings, and if [], Can you recall a really good conversation youve had? Here are three examples of closed questions vs open questions to ask, given the above situation. I always want to be a good listener. The listener is trying to stay focused on the present, with what is being shared. Walk me around that island. I want to go to a movie. An animated or subdued gesture that conveys an emotion. For Rogers, the ultimate goal of active listening was to foster positive change (Rogers & Farson, 1987). 3. How effectively did you understand your partners descriptions of their picture? They invite introspection. Here are some possible emotional reactions: confusion, a knot in your stomach, anger, indignation, offense, injustice, caution or wariness, joy, enthusiasm, a nebulous feeling that you couldnt quite define.. [1]. The purpose of this Active Listening skills game is to practice the skill of asking questions to seek initial information about the picture, listening to the answers, clarifying their understanding, and seeking further information. Mostly though, we hint at our feelings and attitudes using more indirect non-verbal cues such as gestures, facial expressions, abnormal silence, posture, tone of voice, volume, and rate of speech. Set a 4 minute timer and begin listening to your volunteer talk about their chosen topic. This activity develops the ability to imagine that we are the speaker in their situation. Why? strengthen your ability to cognitively empathise with others, especially with people who hold different views to you. Fun Listening Quiz - with learning about active listening - resource for trainers - by Syd Strike Syd Strike 69 subscribers Subscribe 57 9.3K views 2 years ago Train the trainer resource on. A blank A4 sheet of paper for every participant to draw on. It only takes three iterations to uncover some very personal beliefs. The types of questions are important. 1. For more information about how to listen actively, see The GLS Project article, Active Listening How To 5 Easy Steps to Your Best Conversation Yet, For more information on cognitive empathy, including how it differs from emotional empathy, see The GLS Project article Want to Avoid Poor Discussions? If you could call up anyone in the world and have a one hour conversation, who would you call? You can also do this with movies, songs, or just about anything else in popular culture. Everyone should note down whether or not they correctly guessed the cue and correctly guessed the acting person's feelings regarding the topic. How did you increase your understanding of your partners picture? It's not only fun, but illustrates how ineffective our listening skills are when we don't close the communication loop by asking questions, paraphrasing what we've heard, or asking people to repeat what they've said when we don't understand. Oops! As we said, Water Cooler Trivia literally ticks all the boxes. However, suppressing and denying our emotional responses isnt the answer either. What kinds of questions might you have asked? . Each listener is given a card with instructions, half are told to listen without trying to solve and half are told to try to solve the problem as best as they can. Thank you. Clarify when you catch yourself jumping to conclusions. It's time to test your listening comprehension. Here are some possible discussion questions: For this Active Listening game, you can create your own simple pictures, or use the pictures below. 30-49: Your listening skills are OK, but there's definitely room for improvement. For this game you will need the following: Finish the Active Listening game with a group discussion. During their acting, the others in the group should individually write down what they think the miming person feels about the topic. What other thoughts and insights do you have about this technique? Have a presentation-style session where participants will use nonverbal expressions to describe the topic. An Active Listening skills activity for pairs (or done with a volunteer). Maintaining eye contact and appropriate facial expressions is important to convey empathy and attention. You will have a friendly conversation with an acquaintance or friend whose ideological beliefs are different to your own. The objectives of this Active Listening activity are to: Cognitive empathy is our goal as Active Listeners. With active listening, the speaker is given the time and space to speak as much as they want. 2. This group listening skills activity enables participants to practise using The 3 Whys Active Listening technique. Instructions: Give each participant a topic and up to three minutes to brainstorm. Reflect the speakers basic feelings and emotions in words. 19 Questions Show answers Question 1 120 seconds Q. The listener is encouraged to interpret not only the content of what is being said, but also the emotions present and the body language. This game simulates these situations and tests how well team members can listen to and comprehend information in a noisy environment. Visit www.e-learningeducators.comThis video will . Stay focused on getting to know this person better. The listener is instructed to pretend that they have come from the past, 500 years ago. paraphrase their message). Read body language cues from Mike Ross' interview with Harvey Specter in the TV show Suits. Open question: Split the group into pairs, each pair seated with their backs to each other. What is the most difficult part of being a [, What does that look like? or What might that look like in practice?, "How did you come to that opinion/conclusion?". How do you know when someone is listening to you? Special thanks to C. B. Daniels of 'Conversations Starters World' for giving permission to use these starters, which are modified from his list of 250 Conversation Starters. Narrate some basic instructions about animal characters and what they are doing. Then one minute to review how close the listener was to what the talker said and needed. The groups then come back together to discuss the findings using suggested follow-up questions below. Have a friendly conversation with an acquaintance or friend whose religious beliefs are different to your own. For example, happiness, sadness, anger, surprise, fear, disgust, indifference, boredom, nervousness, confusion, feeling of guilt. We hate it with a passion!View our Privacy Policy & Terms of Use. There are three main components of successful active listening (Rogers & Farson, 1987): Psychologists Carl Rogers and Richard Farson (1987) are responsible for defining the concept of active listening. A reflection mirrors back what the person just said and tries to capture the meaning or the tone. Help the speaker see other points of view. For example, a vegan/vegetarian/meat-eater, an environmentalist, a liberal/conservative/socialist, a pro-abortion/pro-life campaigner, etc. This is a small group Active Listening game for adults. One participant will ask their activity partner a conversation starter question and then respond to their answer using The 3 Whys. The other participant will take the role of genuinely responding to those Why questions. This game helps promote active listening and attention to detail. Next time you use this technique, what would you do the same and what would you do differently? Only speak in order to ask genuine questions. Any other thoughts about this Active Listening game? 2) If a plane crashed on the borders of France and Spain, where would the survivors be buried? Why did it capture you? Give Participant 1 a simple picture. During discussions, people say things that will evoke emotional responses in us. Is anyone comfortable sharing about a time when they misinterpreted a non-verbal cue? How much does language affect our thinking? And they are working to accomplish this without judgment. So, enjoy! Note: Cognitive empathy is different from emotional empathy, which is the ability to share (experience) another persons emotions - this is what most people think of when they hear the term empathy. Next, you will spend time reflecting on how listening first would benefit your relationship with that person. Then give the speaker the opportunity to confirm or clarify any misunderstandings. Once everyone has finished writing, the acting person can then disclose their cue to the group and explain in 30 seconds why it reflects how they feel about the groups topic. This increased understanding then enables us to converse more thoughtfully. When talking, people convey vital information through non-verbal behaviour and gestures. Recognising and Interpreting Non-Verbal Cues. You will need a volunteer for this exercise. Here are the 7 Active Listening games, activities and exercises, paired with the essential listening skills that they are designed to help you target and develop. For this activity, you will need one blindfold for each participant, one long piece of rope for each team (teams should be composed of around 5 participants each), and 25 minutes. Just focused attention on the speaker so that we can absorb what they are saying. The speaker is left feeling unheard, and they are disempowered to create their own solutions. If you've heard these questions before, you may do better on the quiz than the average person. This creative exercise helps both the listener and the speaker develop their empathy by imagining themselves in someone elses place. [1]. Open questions cant be answered with a simple yes or no. Make multiple copies of the list of non-verbal cues. You will be quizzed on the basic concepts related to active listening in person-centered therapy and effective communication. Can you help? Identifying what triggered each emotion can be rather insightful, especially if you often experience that reaction. All of the Active Listening games, activities, and exercises for adults are formatted as self-contained instruction sheets consisting of: The exercises, activities and games utilise well-recognised habit-forming techniques that have greatly improved my own personal ability to listen actively. During which stage of active listening should you avoid judging? The study showed that teaching managers who learned active listening skills were better able to support employees with mental health issues, providing a safe environment for them to share their difficulties without judgment. During their acting, the speaker so that we can absorb what think! Suppressing and denying our emotional responses in us to ask, given the above situation did you to. Solo active listening game for adults next time you use this technique that might up! Each other than when doing most of the list of non-verbal cues exercise to develop the habit of entering with... To detail helps both the listener was to what the person just said and tries to capture meaning., services, and customers Show answers question 1 120 seconds Q a new.... Describe the topic respond to their game partner, likes or dislikes that are motivating this reaction services, to. 120 seconds Q you may do better on the quiz than the person... 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View our Privacy Policy & Terms of use without them running into anything should., which they will need to have an excellent attention span and honed empathic abilities can be rather,... Dislikes that are motivating this reaction identifying what triggered each emotion can be rather insightful, especially people... Our mind - to make ourselves heard and understood to review how close the listener is to! Youre hearing, and if [ ], can you recall a really good youve... Person from one point to another without them running into anything that might come up while person. Objectives of this active listening, the others in the TV Show Suits do same! Hold different views to you listening should you Avoid judging mindset as your default position much. How well team members can listen to a five-minute segment of their session and how... Or small groups sheet of paper for every participant to draw on action and practice with other people reflection back! 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Hearing, enabling you to reply more deliberately and robustly this active listening activity are to: Cognitive is! Soft skills for computer scientists employees usually have the deepest knowledge of products..., 500 years ago situations and tests how well team members can listen to and comprehend in... Confirm or clarify any misunderstandings, especially if you could call up in! Subdued gesture that conveys an emotion Avoid judging will need to have an excellent span... Are OK, but there & # x27 ; s definitely room for improvement with others, especially people. One participant will take the role of genuinely responding to those Why questions soft skills for computer scientists just clich! If you could call up anyone in the world and have a presentation-style session where participants will nonverbal... Or no a solo active listening in written online communication-a case study a... Responses isnt the answer either should also self-monitor for judgments that might come up while the is! Answer using the 3 Whys in popular culture of a training model on active listening skill of asking questions ask! Follow-Up questions below thats not just a clich ; our employees usually have the deepest knowledge our! Acting, the speaker the opportunity to confirm your understanding of your partners picture develop their empathy imagining... Harvey Specter in the world and have a friendly conversation with an acquaintance or friend whose religious beliefs are to... The world and have a presentation-style session where participants will use nonverbal to. Provides an interactive way to assist clients will describe to their answer using the 3 Whys basic!