Empathic Listening: Definition, Examples, and Skills

Empathic listening is a powerful tool that enables you to understand others better by listening to them with empathy and understanding. In this article, you'll explore empathic listening definitions, examples, and skills that will help you become a better listener. 

Active empathic listening involves focusing on the speaker, paying attention to their words and nonverbal cues, and reflecting on what they say to truly understand their perspective. Critical thinking is also an essential component of empathic listening, as it enables you to think beyond the surface level of what someone says and understand their underlying feelings and motivations. 

What is empathic listening?

Empathic listening is a communication technique that involves listening with empathy and understanding another person's perspective. This approach requires you to be fully present and attentive to what the other person is saying, both verbally and non-verbally. Empathic listening is an active process that involves focusing on the speaker's message and reflecting on their emotions and thoughts.

What is the difference between empathic and empathetic listening?

Empathic listening should not be confused with empathetic listening, which is built on mutual respect and involves feeling and experiencing the same emotions as the speaker. While empathetic listening can be helpful in some situations, it may not always be the best approach, as it can make it difficult to maintain a sense of objectivity and fully understand the other person's perspective.

What are 3 characteristics of empathic listening?

There are several characteristics of empathic listening, but here are three of the most important ones:

1. Active listening

Active listening is a key component of empathic listening because it requires you to give your full attention to the speaker, both verbally and non-verbally. This means actively engaging in the conversation, asking questions to clarify any misunderstandings, and providing feedback to show that you are listening. Active listening helps to create a safe and supportive environment for the speaker, where they feel heard and understood.

2. Critical thinking

Critical thinking is also essential for empathic listening. It involves evaluating the speaker's words, identifying their underlying feelings and motivations, and reflecting on the conversation from multiple perspectives. This requires you to think beyond the surface level of what the speaker is saying and try to understand their thoughts and emotions. Critical thinking helps to deepen your understanding of the speaker's perspective and build stronger connections with them.

3. No bias, judgment-free zone

We all have our own biases and judgments that can cloud our ability to truly listen and understand others. To engage in empathic listening, it's important to recognize your own biases and set them aside. This means approaching the conversation with an open mind and avoiding making assumptions or jumping to conclusions. By doing so, you can create a non-judgmental environment where the speaker feels safe to share their thoughts and feelings.

Skills of an empathic listener

The skills of an empathic listener are crucial for creating a supportive and nurturing communication environment, especially if you want to build stronger relationships with the people around you.

Practicing these skills involves some practical steps:

Reflective listening

Reflective listening involves paraphrasing the speaker's words and reflecting back on what they've said to show you've understood their message, help the speaker feel heard and validated, and ensure there are no misunderstandings or miscommunications. You can put this into practice by summarizing what they’ve said and asking clarifying questions. 

Non-verbal communication

Pay attention to non-verbal communication – body language, facial expressions, and tone of voice. If you maintain eye contact, nod along, and give the right facial expressions back to your speaker, you signal empathy and prove that you’re engaged in what they’re saying. 

Empathy and understanding

Empathy involves putting yourself in the speaker's shoes and imagining how they feel, while understanding requires you to consider their perspective without judgment. The best empathic listeners approach conversational openly and set aside biases to create a safe place for genuine dialogue.

Open-ended questions

Asking open-ended questions encourages the speaker to elaborate and provide more detail about their thoughts and feelings, which can help to deepen the conversation and improve understanding. Questions such as "Can you share more about your experience?" or "How did that situation affect you?" not only allows speakers to elaborate on their feelings and thoughts, but also improves mutual understanding.

Patience and tolerance

It's hard to have patience and tolerance. Let’s face it, we all have bad days. However, listening requires a great deal of patience and concentration, especially when the conversation is emotionally charged. The best way to demonstrate empathic listening is to allow speakers to fully express their thoughts without interruption or rushing. Practicing patience and tolerance helps build trust and reinforces a supportive environment.

Empathic listening examples in the workplace

Being told how to be an empathic listener is one thing. It can be difficult, though, to imagine what it looks like in practice. So, considering how essential this skill is in creating a productive and positive workplace, here are some examples of empathy listening in the workplace:

Employee concerns and feedback

There may be a time when an employee wants to voice their concern or give feedback about a process or situation. For example, if an employee expresses dissatisfaction with their workload, an empathic listener would actively listen to their concerns and consider possible solutions, such as delegating tasks or adjusting deadlines. 

By showing empathy and understanding, the listener can make the employee feel valued and supported, improving morale and productivity.

Conflict resolution

No matter how hard you try, workplace conflict will always find a way to rear its ugly head. When two employees have a disagreement, an empathic listener would listen actively to each person's perspective, reflect back on their thoughts and feelings, and encourage both parties to come up with a solution together. 

By fostering empathy and understanding, an empathic listener can help to de-escalate the conflict and find a mutually agreeable resolution.

Performance reviews

Empathic listening is also important during performance reviews. An empathic listener would listen carefully to the employee's concerns, goals, and aspirations and provide constructive feedback that aligns with the employee's aspirations. 

By showing empathy and understanding, the listener can motivate the employee to work towards their goals and increase their job satisfaction.

Benefits of empathic listening

Empathic listening involves more than hearing someone’s words – it's about genuinely understanding their thoughts, feelings, and motivations. By consistently practicing empathic listening, you can:

• Build trust and stronger relationships

• Improve conflict resolution

• Boost collaboration. 

This listening approach creates a supportive environment where others feel valued, leading to increased morale and productivity, particularly in workplace settings. What’s great about empathic listening is that you don’t have to be a manager to use it. 

Anyone who wants to communicate more effectively can benefit from empathic listening. What’s more, it can significantly impact both your personal connections and professional success. 

Put empathic listening to work in your career

Empathic listening isn’t just a soft skill to throw on your resume – it’s a career builder, a way of life! Being able to truly hear and understand others will help set you apart during your job search, interviews, and at work. 

Start practicing today by giving colleagues or interviewers your full attention, listening without judgment, and responding thoughtfully. You'll quickly find that becoming an empathic listener can open doors, strengthen connections, and help you advance your career.

If you leverage your empathic listening skills, among others, on your resume, you could land your next dream job. Let us run a free check on it to be sure you’re showcasing your skills properly.

This article has been written and updated by Marsha Hebert.

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