A

re you familiar with the feeling of talking to 
someone you know isn’t really listening? I imag-
ine it draws strong resemblances to speaking to 

a robot: it nods, it provides answers, but it’s incapable of 
really hearing, or caring, about what you have to say. I 
find myself personally frustrated when, in the middle of 
a conversation, the person I’m talking to interrupts with 
a story about him or herself. Sadly, I’ve noticed this gen-
eral tendency in my own behavior. Afterward, I think 
to myself: “Am I talking simply to counter with my own 
experiences, or am I genuinely interested in what this 
person has to share?” 

In a 2014 article written by Harvard Business Prof. 

James Heskett, several professionals suggest the art 
of listening is gradually facing extinction. One scholar 
offers that a generation constantly scrolling through 
its own Twitter and Instagram feed has inevitably lost 
interest in engaging with those outside its realm of inter-
ests and mutual friends. Society now creates virtual net-
works based on whom and what it wants to see — so why 
bother listening to everyone else?

Others experts suggest that humans have struggled 

with the art of listening throughout history. It’s only 
more apparent now because the human population is 
significantly more interactive than it was 30 years ago.

Have you ever wondered why teachers and profes-

sors encourage you to lower your hand when another 
person speaks? The logic is two-fold: first, it’s a sign of 
respect. But there’s also the fact that when your hand is 
raised, you’re no longer listening to what your fellow stu-
dent is saying. Instead, you’re contemplating your own 
response.

Haskett’s article discusses the Harvard Business 

School discussion leadership strategy, in which leaders 
are encouraged not to call on students whose hands have 
been raised for an extended period of time under the 
assumption that they have stopped listening to the pres-
ent conversation and will therefore bring the topic back 
to what was said several minutes ago.

Whether or not the millennial “Self(ie) generation,” is 

less capable of listening than older generations, we can 
all agree that our society has a serious listening deficien-
cy. 

I’m bothered by this not only because being ignored 

and feeling invisible is incredibly frustrating, but also 
because I don’t want to subconsciously isolate myself 
from the valuable stories, experiences and ideas of those 
around me simply because I’m naturally more interested 
in my own. I don’t just want to share my experiences 
with someone I know genuinely cares; I want to be the 
person who genuinely cares.

I’ve recently begun catching myself from zoning out 

of conversations. I now hold back from liberally insert-
ing personal anecdotes wherever they apply. I do this 
because I don’t want to live in the comfortable world I 
subconsciously construct for myself; the one in which 
I choose the people and news I interact with based on 
my own background and interests. When people are 
generous enough to share their personal thoughts and 
ideas with me, I want to be the kind of person who cares 
enough to listen and engage with what they have to say.

2B

Magazine Editor:

Karl Williams

Deputy Editor:

Nabeel Chollampat

Design Editor:

Shane Achenbach

Photo Editor:

Zoey Holmstrom

Creative Director:

Emilie Farrugia

Editor in Chief:

Shoham Geva

Managing Editor:

Laura Schinagle

Copy Editors:

Emily Campbell

Alexis Nowicki

Jose Rosales

the statement

Wednesday, March 16, 2016 / The Statement

Zooming In: On Really Listening

B Y L A R A M O E H L M A N

the
tangent

T H O U G H T B U B B L E : O N LIN E CL A S SE S

I think that one of the positive aspects of 

online class is that you can manage your 

time and have the opportunity to take classes 

that you wouldn’t have the possibility to 

take otherwise. I wasn’t enough motivated 

enough. I’ve realised that it has been due to 

the absence of human contact: going to the 

traditional classes motivate me more. I think 

that the relationship and the confrontation 

with classmates is really important and that 

cannot be replaced by any other approach. 

– Art and Design senior Elena Pockay

ILLUSTRATION BY EMILIE FARRUGIA

EMILIE FARRUGIA/DAILY

