Toxic People: Decontaminate Difficult People At Work: Without Using Weapons Or Duct Tape

Chapter 11. Listen Up!

Ginger is simply impossible at work. She gets into everyone else's business and finds time to discuss her opinions and personal issues with anyone who will listen. Unfortunately, her boss listens to her and sometimes acts upon her advice. The rest of the team is fed up, ticked off, and ready to quit. Sound familiar? Well, listen up!

You have no clue how to listen. This Toxic Person survival skill is not taught in schools or business. Your parents were supposed to teach you to listen, just as they were supposed to impart sex education when you were in your early teens. In reality, what probably happened was that you learned from their behaviors and modeling more than from their direct instruction the important skill of listening.

There is an excellent possibility that your "listening gland" has atrophied from disuse. Don't think you are alone. The majority of the adult population suffers from the same condition. Much of the conflict you deal with daily originates in poor listening patterns. Toxic People's behavior intensifies because no one listens to them.

I remember being in a restaurant and getting terrible food and service. The server asked, "How was everything?" When I answered honestly and said things were awful, the automatic response was, "Great! You can pay up front whenever you're ready." The server didn't hear a word I said! The good news is I won't have to hear that again from that establishment, because I will never go back. They allowed me to vote ...