Lauren Powers - Active Listening: You Can Be a Great Listener (Download)

We’ve all experienced conversations where we feel unheard—where the other person is clearly waiting for their turn to speak rather than genuinely engaging with what we’re saying. Yet most of us unknowingly do the same thing. We mentally rehearse responses, jump to conclusions, or drift into our own thoughts while someone else is talking. This reactive habit damages relationships, creates workplace misunderstandings, and limits our ability to lead, collaborate, and influence others effectively.

True active listening isn’t passive silence—it’s an engaged, creative skill that transforms ordinary conversations into meaningful exchanges. In professional settings, this ability separates good managers from great leaders and turns strained client interactions into productive partnerships.

Course Overview

Active Listening: You Can Be a Great Listener is a practical communication course led by Lauren Powers, a Master Certified Coach with twenty years of experience teaching listening skills. Powers brings unique credibility to this topic, having transformed herself from a self-described “terrible listener” into a professional whose career depends on listening mastery.

The course balances internal awareness development with external techniques, offering real-world examples that clarify exactly what to notice and how to respond. Powers addresses common concerns upfront: you don’t need marathon conversations, you don’t have to provide solutions, and you can even interrupt strategically when done well.

What You’ll Learn

This training reveals how to identify and overcome reactive habits that masquerade as listening. You’ll discover the difference between “Level One” listening (focused on your own thoughts) and “Level Two” listening (genuinely focused on the speaker), then practice shifting your attention accordingly.

The course develops your ability to observe both verbal content and emotional energy, teaching you simple reflection phrases that build trust and make speakers feel truly heard. You’ll learn to notice emotions accurately, ensuring people feel understood rather than dismissed.

Perhaps most valuably, you’ll unleash natural curiosity through powerful questioning techniques that deepen clarity, add value, and strengthen connections—without needing to offer advice or expertise.

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Course Content Breakdown

Foundation: Understanding Active Listening

The opening modules establish why active listening matters as a power tool for influence and impact. You’ll examine automatic habits that block genuine listening—what Powers calls the “ME Channel”—and identify your personal reactive patterns through targeted exercises.

Developing Core Skills

Mid-course sections explore the listening mindset that supports rather than judges, teaching you to focus attention on speakers’ words and underlying mood. You’ll practice recognizing non-verbal cues that communicate beyond language, understanding that you don’t need to interpret everything perfectly to listen effectively.

The curriculum covers paraphrasing and summarizing techniques that demonstrate comprehension, exploring creative ways to reflect back what you’ve heard. You’ll learn practical habits like managing conversation volume, choosing appropriate timing, and even interrupting constructively when it shows genuine engagement.

Advanced Techniques

Later modules develop empathy through emotion identification exercises, helping you listen for feelings beneath the surface. The course introduces powerful questioning frameworks, including the GROW model, that expand conversations without steering them toward your agenda.

Finally, you’ll explore curiosity as an antidote to judgment, discovering how genuine wonderment about others’ perspectives prevents misinterpretation and enriches dialogue.

Who Should Enroll

This course benefits professionals seeking to reduce frustrating workplace interactions, increase collaboration success, and manage relationships effectively with both team members and supervisors. It’s ideal for anyone who wants more satisfying personal conversations, improved leadership presence, or stronger client relationships.

The skills apply whether you’re in management, customer-facing roles, or simply committed to becoming a better communicator in all areas of life.