With a fleeting attention span due to social media, people often forget the “art of listening”. This results in several individuals seeking help from AI bots for both personal and professional problems. In times when ChatGPT has become more like a shrink, we asked the platform to share 10 active-listening techniques for two individuals. Here’s what it said.. We also asked experts to verify each listening technique.. ChatGPT advised putting away distractions like mobile phones and multitasking to focus on the speaker. Dr Murali Krishna, Visiting Consultant – Psychiatry & Counselling Services, Aster RV Hospital, Bangalore, shared the importance of active listening: Effective communication.. “Your constant eye contact and open body language, together with your complete focus on others, create a secure environment because you protect their personal space. The process helps people share more while it establishes trust, which develops throughout the relationship,” he stated.. 2. Show you are listening. According to ChatGPT, one should use small cues, such as “hmmm”, “I see”, or simply nodding to signal that you are listening to the speaker. To verify this technique, Dr Krishna shared that sending cues to the speaker is crucial, as it helps people stay connected while maintaining conversation flow. “People need to show their real selves because mechanical responses and exaggerated replies create fake impressions. The small signals in therapy sessions assist patients to continue speaking about their most sensitive and difficult topics,” he said.. 3. Don’t interrupt. ChatGPT advised people to get hold of their overexcitement, allowing the speaker to finish their thoughts first. Dr Krishnan stressed that allowing someone to complete their speech demonstrates both respect and patience.. “People need time to express their emotions, especially when they experience high levels of stress. The process of emotional processing gets interrupted by disruptions, which leads to people withdrawing from their current situation,” he shared.. Don’t Miss | ‘Throws the body’s internal clock off rhythm’: Study finds link between night-time light exposure and cardiovascular problems, independent of healthy habits such as good diet and sleep. 4. Reflect back. The generative AI chatbot suggests repeating the speaker’s words in one’s own words. Commenting on the technique, Dr Krishnan noted that the ability to transform spoken words into different expressions is a reliable method for assessing comprehension.. Story continues below this ad. “Your listening skills extend beyond word recognition because you process the complete meaning of the spoken content. The process of reflection needs to contain all spoken material together with its emotional context,” he said, adding that, “The speaker establishes a strong connection through their complete understanding of their emotions together with the actual details of the situation.”. 5. As
