In helping to provide design services to property owners in the local area, Molly Lauer uses a very important principle that should be part of any consulting or service business in any industry.
Essentially, it’s the active listening principle: some call it the Socratic listening principle after the famous Greek philosopher. Here’s what it means in the context of business…
Many of us are programmed to speak first and listen, if at all, later.
It’s easy to feel like we have the experience and expertise to give our knowledge to others, but that we don’t need to take time to take in information ourselves.
This sort of unconscious bias, though, can be a stumbling block for businesses. It can lead them to develop a troubling blind spot that’s bad for the business, and bad for the customer, too.
The Discovery Call
By putting in place a practice that promotes active listening, Molly Lauer is bringing more tools to her customers’ fingertips.
During the call, Molly listens, in order to get the full picture of what someone is envisioning for their property.
In discussion, Molly Lauer’s full service design business brings an aesthetic of organic modern transitional design and the casual sophistication it provides for clients to the table, in order to brainstorm how to make a property more comfortable and form a better impression visually.
That doesn’t just happen by magic. It happens with deliberate and thoughtful work processes – but it also happens differently when the designer is listening to what the customer is saying.
Too often, you get to the end of the job with a particular service company, and you see that the job is done well – but it’s just not done to the preferences that were offered and explained at the beginning.
That, again, shows the unconscious bias that many of us have to pursue things our own way, even if someone else is paying us to do them and we have a road map that originated from someone else’s head.
It’s true that people defer to experts, and that’s all good and proper in a lot of cases – but that doesn’t preclude the active listening that really informs a good service business, including interior design assistance and renovation of a living space.
So talk to Molly Lauer about what you want for your property. You’ll be proud of the result at the end of the day – and you’ll feel that you were listened to, too.
