“A riot is the language of the unheard.”

— Martin Luther King, Jr.

Protests across the globe broke out after the death of George Floyd. The repercussions and developments from this time will be far-reaching. It would be criminal to overlook the leadership insight this provides: Listening is leadership.

George Floyd went unheard as he pleaded for his life. His voice carried; but it did not register to a point of action or change. In so many ways, leadership in business can provide vehicles of communication for employees, but a voice sounded is a far cry from the message registered and responded to.

Employees who feel unheard will protest, and it is never peaceful. Negativity, passive-aggressive behavior, gossip, outbursts and undermining leadership is the language of the unheard in the business place.

As businesses still adjust to the Covid-19 crisis, listening is as preeminent a skill as it has ever been. Input from employees, a good starting point, is still not enough. What does full-circle listening look like?

Leaders don’t just pour in, they draw out. Listening is going after the underlying story. Leaders don’t just want facts; they want to uncover the story employee’s are telling themselves. Policies, procedures and dictated changes easily communicate what a leader never intended; and offense can be taken. Executive listening is the bridge between where people are and where they want to be.

The goal of listening is to draw out concern so as to implement actions of change. If things aren’t changing, leaders are not listening. Executive leaders focus on employee agenda, not their own. The key skill of listening is asking questions. An old proverb says that he who answers before listening is a fool. Listening is accomplished when the leader sees as his employee sees.

Executive listening is a four-fold process (IPOD).

Input

Asking questions is an art. Too many questions come with too many details; we set up questions, we buffer questions with explanations, or we lump questions together. Remember, one short question at a time, and then the next best question at that time. Too often, we ask a question and take an answer as having been sufficient. Instead, ask as many follow-up questions as needed so that an employee has exhausted (positively) what they want to say. Second, ask questions that are future-focused toward resolution, not past-focused around frustrations. Listening as leadership isn’t about the dump; it’s about the rebuilding.

Listening as leadership seeks to understand the experience of an employee and what resolve will make their work more effective.

Input seeks to clarify a measurable outcome, and to understand the difference that outcome will make for employees. Questions also dig in the current reality: What are the obstacles to this end, and what are the opportunities already in place to take advantage of them?

Process

Process is the discipline of a leader to keep the information they are receiving within the right context. Process avoids leadership defensiveness. Process also helps the employee to channel their thinking within the avenue of the stated goal; in other words, it keeps people on track: What can be changed (future) vs. what cannot (past).

Jonathan Reitz, a Master Coach, talks about questions that are BOLD. Good questions build forward momentum, are open ended, leave room for thinking and drive to action.

Owned

A leader who listens takes responsibility for what they are hearing. They are not looking for the first moment to give advice or to counter what they are hearing. The only thing a leader is listening for is the next best question: What question will help a person further express their thoughts or constructively move to a new area of questioning.

Directed toward action

When a child is hungry and in its crib, it will begin to whimper. The whimper will become a cry. Left unattended, a cry will become a fit, perhaps with banging or shaking a crib. Still unheard, toys will fly. Why? Because they want food. People protest for a reason. They want something to change, either in their inner experience or in their external environment.

Listening as leadership helps employees to identify options toward solutions. Options generated by someone other than the leader is met with ownership by the employees. Actions dictated by leaders is perceived as an obligation. Input and genuine contribution of solution alleviate feeling manipulated. The leader then asks the most important question: What is the one thing, if accomplished, will make all other considerations easier or unnecessary?

How you put “listening leadership” into effect depends on your context. The most effective leaders will implement it as a constant dynamic among team interaction. In the least, “listening tours” will prove more effective than accumulated surveys. Options are better than opinions

Protests are  leadership tests.

Listen, and you will pass.