Listen actively to communicate during tough times

By Jo Musich,
a family relations educator with University of Minnesota Extension.
If you have established good communication with your family, you are fortunate indeed. If you recognize you could be better at communicating, you are also fortunate. It is a skill that can be learned. “Active listening” is an important piece of the communications skills set.

Dr. Donna M. Beegle, the president of Communication Across Barriers, believes good communication involves active listening.“Active listening is a way of listening and responding to another person that improves mutual understanding,” Beegle said. “Often when people talk to each other, they don’t listen attentively. They are often distracted, half listening, half thinking about something else.”

It may take some practice to give full attention to another. Listening to understand, not only what the other person is saying but being sensitive to the clues of what the other is feeling, is also part of effective communication. When you are actively listening, you understand what the other person is saying and what they mean. You are not thinking about what you want to say, how you feel, or worse yet, ignoring the person.

Good communication skills become especially important when income is not as it was, when there is financial uncertainty, or when other factors cause situations to change. In a larger picture, relationships with employers, potential employers, customers or other business relations are also improved with good communication skills like active listening.

Families living with changing financial circumstances or uncertainty will be wise to include all family members in new decisions. Set priorities and talk about how income will be spent, considering the immediate goals of each person and the family. A time of economic challenge can become an opportunity to clarify family values. Meeting the need for food, clothing and shelter puts purchasing other items in perspective.