Strategic Listening

• Knowledge is powerful.
• Knowledge shared is more powerful.
• Knowledge from the people in the company who touch it every day is the most powerful of all.

Leaders need to be listening to the ideas and insights from people at the lower levels. While that's seems like a no-brainer, Unfortunately the opposite is often true:  The higher you go in the organization, the harder it is to 'lean down' and listen.

Strategic listening is not a natural, common practice among busy senior leaders, because it requires time and patience and a positive belief in the power and capacity of others.

And like all the other great leadership attributes, strategic listening requires the rare leadership combination of confidence and humility that few of us naturally have.