Gitomer is good.

I had a chance to ask Jeffrey Gitomer a question earlier today.

His answer was pretty freaking helpful first off and secondly it's given me something to think about for the past 10 hours.

The specifics of my question and his answer are not important to this post but some interesting generalities are.

I think back to the editors cut of Pulp Fiction in a scene from Mia's house that did not make the final cut. Mia asks Vincent; In conversation to you listen or wait to talk? Vincent thinks about it and says "I have to admit I wait to talk, but I'm trying harder to listen.

Something Gitomer talks about is listening with the intent to understand. Following this advice and like Vincent Vega I've been trying harder to understand lately when talking to people. Sometimes it's hard, especially when they are flowery talkers and take forever to say the extra words (that I've already figured they were going to say) but it's something I'm actively working on.

Anyhow, this is one point of my reason for bringing this up. When I asked Gitomer my question he answered it from what was obviously a firm position of really trying to understand me/where I was coming from. I know this because the answer is just too fitting for a person that does not know me. People that know me know how I operate. They know my motives, ways, and so on. To have somebody "size me up" so fast in just a few words was pretty interesting.

One of my goals for this year is to continue to work on listening until it becomes a habit for me. Obviously we all listen to people when we talk to them or no communication would go on. I'm just realizing that there is a much deeper level of information being passed on during conversation than I was aware of before. Like a lower sound frequency that you have to tune your ear to if you want to hear it.

Yeah, I suspect there is a LOT of information being passed that goes under the radar because we capture enough detail to formulate our best response and the rest gets lost in white noise.

I think being like Vincent Vega and trying harder to listen is a pretty good idea. Leaving your gun in the kitchen instead of bringing it to the bathroom....not such a good idea.