Greetings Friends,
Thank you for reading and listening this week! Below is a short contemplation from the American psychologist Carl Rogers, along with links to last week’s podcasts and meditations.
Until next week, be wise and be well!
📿 The Art of Listening
This week’s contemplation comes from the American psychologist Carl Rogers (1902—1987). In his classic work, A Way of Being, Rogers wrote,
When I say that I enjoy hearing someone, I mean, of course, hearing deeply. I mean that I hear the words, thoughts, feeling tones, personal meaning, and even the meaning that is below the conscious intent of the speaker. Sometimes, too, in a message that is superficially not very important, I hear a deep human cry that lies buried and unknown far below the surface of the person.
So I have learned to ask myself, can I hear the sounds and sense the shape of this other person’s inner world? Can I resonate with what he is saying so deeply that I sense the meanings he is afraid of yet would like to communicate, as well as those he knows? […]
Strangely, deep listening leads to change. Rogers observed that the art of truly listening to another can give birth to a new sense of freedom. Deep listening can often lead others to be more open to the process of change.
Contemplation Questions (Pick one or create your own!):
How can you begin (or continue) to practice the art of listening?
What might stand in the way of deep listening?
This Week’s Meditations…
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Thank you for reading/listening this week; I hope you found something useful.
Until next time, be wise and be well,
J.W.
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