However, the weather was the most important thing. Readers doing Task 1 were looking for the gist or main idea. They didn't focus on understanding everything. Rather, they read to see what was important. Listening for gist works the same way.
Students only focus on the main ideas.
If one compares listening to reading the other receptive skill, listening for gist is a lot like skimming. Gist listening is like standing in a waterfall. The message washes over you and you get a general understanding. Looking for specific information doesn't mean reading and processing every word to find the answer. Rather, it's about scanning for the needed data.