A vital skill of any good journalist is the ability to interview.
In a podcast with Chris Cilizza of CNN, Chris Cuomo revealed that when he interviews people on his show, he employs three attributes: head, heart and gumption. He uses cognition to keep his facts straight and his emotions to connect with the person to whom he is speaking. Gumption, he implied, came from keeping the cognition and emotion in balance. That is, if you are asking pointed questions to people in power, you better have more than guts on your side: know your facts.
Bringing head, heart and gumption to work requires what Cuomo calls the most important interviewing skill: listening. While a journalist should prepare in advance and know what questions to ask, if he or she sticks to a script, he may miss the story. People being interviewed don't act according to a script; they respond to questions that show that the listener is paying attention to what they are saying.
Probing deeper is essential not only to journalists but also to anyone in a leadership position. While leaders need to get into the habit of asking questions, they need to spend as much—or often more—just listening to what people are saying. Listening is a sign of respect, indeed, but it is also a terrific way to learn. Leaders are deluged with data; listeners who listen with head and heart have the gumption to hold the course or change direction when the situation warrants.
Three Action Steps
Let’s apply what I will call the Cuomo Triptych to the practice of leadership:
Head. Leaders need to understand the issues. While problems may be self-evident, solutions require deliberation based upon learning what is happening. Data tells one story; personal experience of others may say another. It falls to the leader to evaluate the choices based upon a grounding in fact and the lens of experience.
Heart. People are not data points, though, with a reliance on analytics, we may be inclined to think so. And this is where listening becomes essential. Listen to what people are saying. Tune out the distractions so you can focus more effectively. Just as important, is listen for what you don't hear. That is, sometimes, people may be reluctant to speak anything but the party line because they don't want to disappoint the boss, or they fear retribution. Reading the moment—that is, eye movement, hand gestures, and facial expressions—will give the leader insight into what's happening.
Gumption. A leader's responsibility to act, to mobilize others for a common cause. You do that best when you know the issues—as well as how people understand those issues. You need to be able to make the tough choices as well as stand tall when facing headwinds in the face of pushback.
While listening is most evident in matters of the heart, it complements the cognitive realm because you need to know what to listen for. Listening supports gumption because leaders need to be mindful of how people are reacting and responding, especially during times of change.
"Wisdom," wrote Mark Twain, "is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you would have rather talked." Indeed, it requires humility to listen. That said, while big talk can make headlines, listening makes better connections. People feel respected when you listen to them.
A leader’s authority is amplified when followers feel connected to a person who understands them.