The QUIET Listening Framework

June 11th 2025 | 2 mins | Methods

Effective conversations aren’t just about saying the right thing. They are about listening in the right way.

Try staying QUIET instead.

This isn’t about keeping silent to appear polite. By using the mnemonic of QUIET you can gather new insights about a problem or opportunity and get the results you want faster. QUIET is the space for conversations that change perspectives.

Quit Judging

We are paid to form opinions quickly – sharing advice is a default conversational currency. However, biases interfere with our understanding and assumptions cause us to jump to conclusions.

Replace judgment with curiosity. Stay open minded to the points being made.

Understand the conversation type

Is this a conversation to improve understanding? To generate ideas? To problem solve? To make decisions and formulate plans? It may be a combination of these. Conversations go south when you each have different expectations of what’s needed, so ensure you’re in sync with each other.

Indicate you are interested

In a busy world with constant distractions, time is the most valuable thing you can give people. The more you demonstrate that you are fully invested in what the other person is saying, the more likely they are to speak up and share their insights.

Nodding, giving short acknowledgments, showing empathy and maintaining an open, engaged posture are all ways you can indicate that you are interested in learning.

Encourage the speaker

We all think much faster than we can talk. This means we often find it difficult to express our opinions clearly. Help the speaker say what they mean by using phrases such as:

“Can you tell me a bit more about that?”
“Go on”
“I noticed earlier, you said…”

Talk Less

This final principle might seem too obvious to mention. But in a world where we mistakenly think effective communication is solely about how well we speak, it’s helpful to understand that the person who asks the questions and listens more is the one who controls the conversation.

The less we talk, the more we listen – and truly learn. The more we learn, the faster we move toward our goals.

Download QUIET Listening Framework

“The biggest thing you should take away from Google Aristotle is that how teams work matters more than who is on them.

You can take a team of average performers, and if you teach them to interact in the right way, they’ll do things no superstar could ever accomplish.

Lazlo Block, Former head of the People Operations at Google, 2015

The most important audience that you need to ignite is your internal culture. Invest here, then go external.

Duke Stump, Former CMO NIKE, Seventh Generation, Lululemon