Jess Pinto, Immaculata Chapter Member, Class of 2028:

“This week I practiced active listening on my walk with my sister! We have had a busy week with work and it was really nice to listen to each other, but more importantly we both felt heard. My sister and I work together, and even though we spend days together, we are still very different people who experience things differently. While my sister was talking, I tried my best to just hear her out without interrupting. I also asked questions to show my interest and how much I care. I found it most difficult when she was talking about things that I experienced differently. I think by nature, I want to make comments or explain how I experienced something personally, but that is not always the reaction that makes people feel heard. Something that I found out about myself was I feel the most heard when people are interacting with my conversation and asking questions. When it was my turn to speak and talk about my day, my sister was very open to listening and involved in my conversation, because of the way I listened to her.  

Another way I practiced active listening this week was at my work. I work with children and it can be extremely overwhelming when a lot of people need something from you at the same time. This week particularly I worked on trying to give one person my attention at a time. This way they felt seen and heard because they deserve my full attention rather than me half listening no matter how busy I am. Taking that minute to slow down and really hear people takes more time in the moment, but it helps alleviate miscommunication after the fact. I am not perfect at active listening by any means but what worked for me was being intentional with my conversations. This is definitely a skill I am going to keep incorporating in my life as best I can!”