One of the unique qualities of effective leaders is they are also good listeners. They nurture the responsibility of investing their time to support their people if they face any issues or problems in their work tasks. Every successful leader will respect effective listening and regular learning, and they will also encourage their employees to develop these skills to improve their work performance.

“Effective leadership is putting first things first. Effective management is discipline, carrying it out,” said Stephen Covey, an American educator, author, businessman, and keynote speaker. Stephen is best known for his most popular book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

Here is how effective listening can make you a better leader.

Listening shows respect and regard for the people you work with 

When a leader provides effective listening to their people and takes time to understand their problems and issues then this will demonstrate that they care for their people’s emotions. To improve your leadership qualities you should participate in active listening because when you present active listening in front of your employees, they will tend to listen to you more carefully. Effective listening is a very powerful tool to establish a strong relationship with your people, clients, and stakeholders.

Listening builds a broader sense of trust and community 

When a leader shows effective listening to their employees this will encourage them to form trust with their leaders and they will feel comfortable and confident in sharing their ideas, thoughts, or problems. This shows that employees feel that their leader is important enough to seek out any issues. Active listening demonstrates the value that the leader actually cares about their people, as well as their internal and external stakeholders. Also, employees will feel valued in the organization and will work hard to provide effective and efficient work results.

Listening broadens your perspective and helps you accumulate important information and reduce misunderstandings.

When the employees feel comfortable in sharing their ideas and thoughts with their leader, it means that they are generally more satisfied with the leader and the organization. And when the employees are happy in the organization they will try to improve work productivity and faster their effective work to increase their business growth. Active listening will also help the leaders to be aware of any potential issues or problems that can invade the business.

Effective communication will help you to encourage your people to work hard and provide better and faster work results but being active listening is always fundamental to problem solving and innovations. One of the leading examples for being a successful leader is Moez Kassam, a Canadian hedge fund manager, venture capitalist, and entrepreneur. Moez Kassam is an executive member of the Young Presidents Organization’s (YPO) Maple Leaf Chapter, where he serves as Education Officer.