Every day, Thiagi tweets ready-to-use pieces of practical advice on different topics such as facilitation, listening skills, communication, leadership, productivity, training, and management.

Here are some recent pieces of advice about listening skills that were re-tweeted frequently:

Don’t get distracted by the presenter. Ignore the accent, facial expressions, mannerisms, and appearance. Focus on the content.
If you want to give your opinion, wait until the other person has finished speaking. Take your turn and give back the control.
Mentally rephrase what the speaker said in your own words. After the speaker finishes, test your version to see if you understood correctly.
Prepare yourself to listen by discarding all distracting thoughts. Listening is a difficult job that needs concentration.
Simply listen. Don’t plan your response or rebuttal. Instead, attend carefully to what the speaker says and how he or she says it.
When someone gives you a compliment don’t treat it like a tennis ball to be returned. Listen without denying or putting yourself down.
When someone makes an unreasonable request, just say, “No” without apologizing or explaining.