Everything I needed to know about medical management I learned in acting school - Essay

Physician Executive, July-August, 2002 by Brian A. Meltzer

In an ideal world, listening would involve taking in everything said to you in its entirety without your brain conjuring up any intervening thoughts or subconsciously jockeying for conversational position.

A substantial portion of the first day of the tutorial for CPE certification focuses on listening skills. We listened to excellent lectures and then went into our cohort groups to practice the listening skill. While the exercises always go well in the training situation, in the unprotected world outside of the cohort room, our practiced skills falter.

In the real world, we are truly listening to others with one ear tied behind our back.

There is more to active listening than just saying "Uh-huh" at appropriate intervals or paraphrasing portions of what you heard.

Let's be honest. In a "real" conversation, we half-hear what the other person is saying. We waste valuable mental energy paying attention to how our inner voice plans to respond. How nice it would be if we could each trust our own instincts and listen without planning a response, allowing our minds to respond to what it has heard in a spontaneous and honest manner.

How many times have problems occurred in the workplace because something was misheard? Was the statement not clear in the first place, or were others simply not listening?

Or perhaps we felt someone was insincere because of his or her body language. When we say things more clearly, it helps other people understand what we are saying. Likewise, if people do not listen, they are unlikely to get the full picture someone is trying to present.

How does this translate on stage?

When improvising a scene, every spoken word and every gesture is being created and exposed in front of an audience at that very moment. It is the actor's job to pick up his clues from that exposition and add to it (using that mental flash that was mentioned earlier). Imagine how terrifying it would be to be in front of an audience and miss out on everything that has been established because you weren't listening. There's no script telling you what to do. There exists only your bare bones reality moment and some morsels gifted to you by your fellow actors. Listen and do well or pay no attention and truly play the fool.

There are many times we are put on the spot and asked questions in pressure situations. Quite often, it is not the quickest thinker that comes up with the solution first, but the person who was paying the most attention.

How often do you remember the names of people when they are introduced to you?

This skill requires active listening in its most basic form. It's not easy, but it is essential and a most basic skill in the world of business etiquette.

Think about how you approach moments of introduction. If you're like most people, you spend more time worrying about how your name is going to sound that you completely miss the other person's name.

In the world of customer service, people like people who remember their names.

Brian Meltzer, MD, MBA, CPE, is medical director of the urgent care center at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. He can be reached by phone at 212/639-8110 or by e-mail at meltzerb@mskcc.org.