Hold your fire . Overstimulation is almost as bad as understimulation. The overstimulated listener gets too excited too soon. Learn not to get too excited about a speaker s point until you are certain you thoroughly understand it. Listen for ideas .
Good listeners focus on central ideas.
They recognize when central ideas are stated, and they are able to discriminate between fact and principle, idea and example, or evidence and argument. If there is the need, take notes. Sometimes you will need to develop brief, meaningful records for later review. Give the speaker your conscious attention. A good listener fights distractions.