Solutions Start With Listening
It’s not easy to be a leader today. Whether you run a business, company, corporation, large institution, nonprofit organization, classroom, or household, leadership presents unique challenges in the 21st century.
Listening is a good way to turn those challenges into opportunities.
I get my fair share of opportunities to turn challenges into opportunities as a parent, a journalism teacher for middle school students, and the executive director of the Strong Mind Strong Body Foundation, a nonprofit youth and community development organization.
👂Listening as a Parent
As the father of three kids (ages 16, 12, and 9), I am getting better at balancing work and life. On a recent Saturday afternoon, I was doing some work. My 9-year-old son asked me if I could help him make pancakes.
At first, I said, “Give me a minute.” He wasn’t happy. But I wasn’t going to disappoint him.
I took a break, and he pulled up a recipe on his iPad for pancakes with water (since we were out of milk). We made a quick batter, heated up the griddle, and flipped some pancakes together. I fried up some bacon, and 15 minutes later, my son had a belly full of pancakes and bacon.
Then, I went back to work. He was happy because I listened.
