Understanding Others Skills PDF

Many people use the terms “feeling” and “emotion” as synonyms, but they are not interchangeable. While they have similar elements, there is a marked difference between feelings and emotions. Feelings. Both emotional experiences and physical sensations — such as hunger or pain — bring about feelin...

Many people use the terms “feeling” and “emotion” as synonyms, but they are not interchangeable. While they have similar elements, there is a marked difference between feelings and emotions. Feelings. Both emotional experiences and physical sensations — such as hunger or pain — bring about feelings, according to Psychology Today. Feelings are a conscious experience, although not every conscious experience, such as seeing or believing, is a feeling, as explained in the article. Emotions. According to Psychology Today, an emotion “can only ever be felt...through the emotional experiences it gives rise to, even though it might be discovered through its associated thoughts, beliefs, desires, and actions.” Emotions are not conscious but instead manifest in the unconscious mind. These emotions can be brought to the surface of the conscious state through extended psychotherapy. Understanding Others - The Skills You Need People who are good at understanding others: 1. Pick up emotional cues, often from body language, tone of voice, and other non-verbal elements of communication. For more about this, see our pages on Non-Verbal Communication and Body Language. 2. Listen well to what people are saying, actively checking their understanding. You may find it helpful to read our pages on Active Listening, Clarifying and Reflecting. When people talk, listen completely. Most people never listen. 3. Show sensitivity towards others, and understand their perspectives. They are careful not to give offence by saying or doing the wrong thing, and are aware that not everyone has the same point of view. 4. Help other people appropriately, based on their understanding of their needs and emotions. Insights from Understanding Others 5. Developing empathy, and particularly the skill of understanding others, is not just important to your interpersonal relationships. It can also have a much wider impact. The Importance of Sincerity 6. It is possible to pretend that you understand people’s feelings and, more particularly, their concerns.Sales staff often do this to try to establish rapport with customers. Your presence, it is fair to say, will be detected by those around you, probably through subtle hints in your body language, or perhaps in a response to an unexpected question. Understanding others is not ‘Soft’ 7. We often talk about ‘soft skills’, and there is no question that empathy, and understanding others are important soft skills. There is, however, absolutely nothing soft, in the sense of ‘easy’, about understanding others’ concerns and feelings. Neither is it ‘soft’ in the sense of not being tough: the best managers are empathetic, but not ‘soft’ on their team. 8. Understanding others does not mean that you have to agree with their feelings or point of view. Instead, it means that you recognise their point of view, and accept that it is different from yours. You may still have to do difficult things that others do not agree with, but hopefully, both you and they understand that.