“I hear what are you saying” and related signs of problematic management

“I hear what you are saying”

“Hmm… I usually do following in this situation”

Let me stop just after two examples. If you have heard it being said to you, start looking somewhere else for help. And there is 99% chance that you have heard this said to you before. Don’t lie – not to yourself! Remember, you HAVE heard it at one point of time or another, haven’t you?

You see, when someone faces a problem and has got no particular answer, maybe because they don’t think the problem is worth their time, or when they really think you need help and they need to be the person who helps you but have got no idea how, they will scavenge for an escapist answer while you think they are going to do something about it. Make no mistake! The correct and only correct answer is “I don’t know what you are talking about. (Because of … ) Can you please try to explain it further?”

This is something many people don’t realize. Listeners are good at listening because they have got nothing to say. And more they listen, longer they are not trying to get to an answer.

There is nothing inherently malicious or evil about it. This is just how communication goes. In a very profound way, THE problem, is still in you. And in not very profound way, the answer is out there. Its like digging a hole in ground looking for a treasure. There has to be a limit after which you need to find new location for starting anew.

And ‘I hear what you are saying’ is just one sign where it makes sense to stop expecting an answer and start looking for it some place else.