3 – Inhouse
Farai Madzima
NOV 02 | 11:30 - 12:15 PM
St. Lawrence Centre — Jane Mallett Theatre
“I could hear you, but I was just waiting for you to finish so that I could make my point.” “I meant to listen, but I had my mind on something else while you were speaking.” “I pretended to listen; I even nodded my head, but I was actually sending a Slack message.”
Even though you know better, you’ve probably thought, said and done all of these things. We all know the value and importance of listening. But because we’re distracted, we’re anxious, we want to be heard — we don’t listen. We just wait to talk. Or leave. We miss opportunities to connect and create. We make people feel undervalued or unwelcome. And we waste time. Why? Most of us underestimate how difficult it can be to truly, actively listen. We don’t think of it as a skill that can be developed through intentional daily practice.
Pulling from his experience as a people manager, coach, designer and dad, Farai reminds us of the common (and sometimes surprising) barriers that get in the way of us listening deeply and paying full attention. He’ll drop a bit of science on why the brain struggles to “listen.” He’ll share tips and practices that you can include in your work (and life) to improve the way you listen so that you can better connect and collaborate (he’ll even play some birdsongs he heard on his street).
Why should you care about this? Because in a world where everyone is waiting to be heard, actively listening can be a radical, inclusive and creative act.
Farai Madzima
UX Manager at Shopify (Canada)
