Coming out of some conferences and events the last week… Being around this many smart marketing people has really helped something hit home.
It isn’t hard finding someone who knows how to speak. It is hard – excruciatingly hard – to find someone who knows how to listen.
There is a “talking” skill set; think of it as the ability to make what you say sound interesting. Good marketing people have it. That’s why they’re in marketing. The problem is, it’s not usually connected to the “listening” skill set.
I watched a panel discussion yesterday. Three of the speakers dominated the discussion, sometimes even shouting over each other.
The fourth said nothing until the session was two-thirds over. She then spoke up in a level but authoritative voice. She cogently summed up each of the other speaker’s positions, showed where her own perspective differed, and explained why. She said more in two minutes and did more to move the discussion forward then they had in an hour.
A lesson to all of us who like to hear ourselves talk.
