Back to Communication

Getting Back to the Heart of Communication

Written by Corae Young

November 29, 2024

“Hearing is listening to what’s said. Listening is hearing what isn’t said.” -Simon Sinek

In this world we live in, I feel that as we have more opportunities to communicate, we communicate less. Our communication skills have become challenged and weakened. We oftentimes misunderstand, misread, and miss opportunities to share our authentic feelings and words. We send emails, texts, and DMs, thinking that we’ve communicated what we want to say, but there are times when we walk away, more confused than ever. And then when confused, over-think what was said and misdiagnose what was truly shared.

Being an active listener takes time, patience, understanding and practice. Our society moves so quickly nowadays, we very rarely take time to truly listen to what’s being verbally said, and also what’s not being shared that is being communicated. We rush our thoughts, therefore rushing what’s said, and then leaving it up to the other person to try and interpret what we thought we heard. Our mind moves more quickly than our mouths.

We must get back to the true foundation of communication, where one listens to hear, and hears to understand. We need to understand the heart behind the words and feelings. We need to share our vulnerable feelings that will truly allow someone to feel our words, and not just hear them.

There are so many occasions that I can’t even count where I misunderstood someone because I misheard what was said or written. Instead of asking for clarification, I jumped to conclusions and then frustrated the situation even more by overthinking what was shared. Instead, I could have just asked for clarity. I could have repeated what I thought I heard so the other person could confirm the truth of what was shared.

But many times, we don’t do that because communication takes time and effort. It takes a level of understanding where listening is required. Which means we must slow down to hear and understand.

Listening is necessary for the work we must do. It means listening to our customers, the people we serve, the people that we work and volunteer with, our loved ones, etc. Let’s be mindful of how we communicate and whether we are effective. Take time to listen. Take time to be heard. Take time to clearly articulate your needs.