In my first learning to learn paper I wrote of the problems I have my communication skills, specifically my listening skills and how they are lacking. What I learned in writing that paper was that I still had much to do in the overcoming those problems. In conversation I find that my mind has a tendency to wander and sometimes I find myself not paying attention at all. This can depend who I am talking to at the time; if I feel that the person and the subject is important I will try to focus on the conversation, while if I feel that what they are saying does not really interest me I oftentimes find myself not paying any attention at all and ultimately blocking them out. I know that while this may be unintentional I still must work on improving my listening skills.
             "Most people overlook listening, meaning that they give little thought to listening, they think it just happens (Seiler and Beall 141)." I need to be able to not only listen but concentrate on what the speaker is saying, rather than simply letting my mind wander or think of what I will say next. What I have learned is that I am a passive listener, someone who merely listens to the words rather than actually thinking about them or, sometimes, even responding to them. This is not only a valuable social skill, but also crucial to one's success in their career: "Effective listening is the communication skill they believed most contributes to job success (Seiler and Beall 141)."
             I am planning to apply what I have learned to start listening for meaning. I hope that this will not only aid in my college life but also in social situations. I have learned that there is a big difference between simply hearing and actively listening: "Listening is active, whereas hearing is passive (Seiler and Beall, 143)." It is my intention to become an active listener. I think that when I am actually able to pay attention and actually comprehend and absorb the information I hear my co...