On the topic of listening genuinely

It was Ralph Waldo Emerson who said that

There is a difference between truly listening and waiting for your turn to talk.

- and I'm afraid that if we think it over, many of us will discover that we actually aren't listening genuinely to what other people say to us. All too often, we have planned what to say when we have the next opportunity in what should rightfully have been a conversation, but most of all, ressembles two monologues synchronized with each other to ensure that only one person speaks at a time.
The interesting part is: if you do not genuinely listen to what your conversation partner has to say, it will be hard to expect the conversation partner to listen sincerely to what you have to say.
So the sensible start would be to abandon your urge to be heard at all costs and start engaging in conversations rather than simply doing monologues. It may be that you will initially have a conversation with a person who still leads a monologue on her part. But ultimately, one should start with the person in the mirror, who in this way will take a first step for better conversations with conversation partners.

(Translated from Noget om at lytte rigtigt, originally published October 11, 2017)