Listening and Communication Insights: The Power of Effective Engagement

Good listeners listen to understand, not to respond
Listening can take many forms: paying attention to news cycles,
participating actively in social media, running regular focus groups or
opinion polls, and more.
Listening also takes time. It is not something you do once, or once a year.
Communicating is an active process made up of three continuous
and mutually reinforcing actions. It starts with listening, but
involves equal parts learning and sharing. Doing all three well
requires intentionality, focus and time.
74%
Percentage of nonprofit leaders who named
fundraising as a challenge to their personal and
professional effectiveness in the Meyer
Foundation’s 
Executive Director Listening
Project.
1
Organizations' rank of the importance of
communication and listening skills compared
to other skills.
3000
The number of marketing messages an
average American is exposed to each day.
125-250
The number of words per minute the average
listener is capable of hearing. By contrast, we
think at 1000 to 3000 words per minute.
“So many of the issues we work on are stuck because
the dominant narrative is wrong, and that doesn't
change just by doing good grantmaking that gets
results. To leverage those results, to create new
narratives, takes strategic communication.”
Communication Leader
Private Foundation
“Persistence is a problem in the philanthropy world.
For all the talk about we’re in it for the long haul,
there’s a certain amount of impatience
in philanthropy.”
Executive Leader
Private Foundation
“Tell me one major, successful social change
initiative that did not have very strong
communications as part of its success.”
Communication Leader
Private Foundation
What 
intentional,
consistent
 
methods for
listening do you use?
What tools do you
utilize for 
monitoring
your message?
What 
listening tools
can you build into your
communication actions?
Learning is about internalizing what you hear and engaging in true
self-reflection before proceeding with any outbound message
There is much to be learned from internal audiences—your colleagues,
peers, and partners can shed insight that external audiences cannot.
Learning also takes time—lots and lots of time.
Communicating is an active process comprised of three
dynamic and mutually reinforcing actions. Learning follows
listening, but is equally important. Both listening and learning
are prerequisites for sharing.
73%
Percentage of survey respondents who wish
they had more data to prove that
communication investments are worth making.
44%
Percentage of survey respondents who say
their organization always or often
communicates to share learning about what
has and has not worked.
44
Number of years it took to go from one state
where marriage is legal for all couples, to 19.
“Improving an organization's communications
capacity can create organizational cohesion,
concentrate focus, and reinforce shared values.”
Program Leader
Private Foundation
"Communication moves at a fast pace. The foundation
world does not. And so opportunities are missed.”
Communication Leader
Private Foundation
“There is a dynamic tension between
communication and programs. Communication
feels that what program wants to say is too boring,
wonky, complex. Program feels communication
is stretching the truth by trying to simplify.”
Communication Leader
Nonprofit
How do you learn from
internal
 
and 
external
audiences?
What do you do
to encourage
self-reflection
?
Are you 
receptive
 
to
what your audience
can teach you?
Sharing is the active dissemination stage where your messages are
delivered to, and received by, your key audiences.
Sharing assumes many forms, channels, and routes, nearly all of which
require the communicator to ultimately cede control of the message.
Active, effective communication unfolds slowly, even when it is done
masterfully.
Communicating is an active process made up of three continuous
and mutually reinforcing actions. Sharing, the final step in a
virtuous circle, rarely succeeds fully until you have listened and
learned first.
1 in 10
Ratio of Americans who can give an example of
a foundation’s impact on an issue they care
about.
8 in 10
Ratio of Americans who think it would be a
loss for their community if foundations no
longer existed.
65%
Percentage of millennials who receive regular
email or newsletters from 1 to 5 nonprofits.
“Strategic communications raises the visibility of the
issues we address, shines the light on organizations
and leaders we value, and leverages the grant making
investments made by the foundation.”
Program Leader
Private Foundation
“If people we wish to impact don't understand the
issue, what we are trying to change, or how it effects
the society in which we live, we will never achieve
lasting change.”
Communication Leader
Private Foundation
“We’re dealing with policy makers who have limited
knowledge about foundations. Many don’t know what
a foundation is or does, and that’s our fault, not theirs.”
Executive Leader
Private Foundation
Are you 
listening 
and
learning 
before sharing?
What do you do to
calibrate 
your content?
How do you deal with
messages that 
fail
?
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Effective communication is a pivotal component in fostering understanding, learning, and sharing in various contexts, from nonprofit leadership challenges to the importance of listening skills in organizations. This content emphasizes the significance of active listening, highlighting statistics such as the daily exposure to marketing messages and the average listener's word comprehension rate. It underscores the necessity for strategic communication to shift dominant narratives and drive social change initiatives successfully. The narrative explores the challenges of persistence in philanthropy and advocates for prioritizing communication to achieve long-term impact.


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  1. Listen Listen www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  2. Listen Communicating is an active process made up of three continuous and mutually reinforcing actions. It starts with listening, but involves equal parts learning and sharing. Doing all three well requires intentionality, focus and time. Good listeners listen to understand, not to respond Listening can take many forms: paying attention to news cycles, participating actively in social media, running regular focus groups or opinion polls, and more. www.com-matters.org Listening also takes time. It is not something you do once, or once a year. www.com-matters.org

  3. Listen Listen 74% Percentage of nonprofit leaders who named fundraising as a challenge to their personal and professional effectiveness in the Meyer Foundation s Executive Director Listening Project. www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  4. Listen Listen 1 Organizations' rank of the importance of communication and listening skills compared to other skills. www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  5. Listen Listen 3000 The number of marketing messages an average American is exposed to each day. www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  6. Listen Listen 125-250 The number of words per minute the average listener is capable of hearing. By contrast, we think at 1000 to 3000 words per minute. www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  7. Listen So many of the issues we work on are stuck because the dominant narrative is wrong, and that doesn't change just by doing good grantmaking that gets results. To leverage those results, to create new narratives, takes strategic communication. COMMUNICATION LEADER Private Foundation www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  8. Listen Persistence is a problem in the philanthropy world. For all the talk about we re in it for the long haul, there s a certain amount of impatience in philanthropy. EXECUTIVE LEADER Private Foundation www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  9. Listen Tell me one major, successful social change initiative that did not have very strong communications as part of its success. COMMUNICATION LEADER Private Foundation www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  10. Listen What intentional, consistent methods for listening do you use? www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  11. Listen What tools do you utilize for monitoring your message? www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  12. Listen What listening tools can you build into your communication actions? www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  13. Learn Learn www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  14. Learn Communicating is an active process comprised of three dynamic and mutually reinforcing actions. Learning follows listening, but is equally important. Both listening and learning are prerequisites for sharing. Learning is about internalizing what you hear and engaging in true self-reflection before proceeding with any outbound message There is much to be learned from internal audiences your colleagues, peers, and partners can shed insight that external audiences cannot. www.com-matters.org Learning also takes time lots and lots of time. www.com-matters.org

  15. Learn Learn 73% Percentage of survey respondents who wish they had more data to prove that communication investments are worth making. www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  16. Learn Learn 44% Percentage of survey respondents who say their organization always or often communicates to share learning about what has and has not worked. www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  17. Learn Learn 44 Number of years it took to go from one state where marriage is legal for all couples, to 19. www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  18. Learn Improving an organization's communications capacity can create organizational cohesion, concentrate focus, and reinforce shared values. PROGRAM LEADER Private Foundation www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  19. Learn "Communication moves at a fast pace. The foundation world does not. And so opportunities are missed. COMMUNICATION LEADER Private Foundation www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  20. Learn There is a dynamic tension between communication and programs. Communication feels that what program wants to say is too boring, wonky, complex. Program feels communication is stretching the truth by trying to simplify. COMMUNICATION LEADER Nonprofit www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  21. Learn How do you learn from internal and external audiences? www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  22. Learn What do you do to encourage self-reflection? www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  23. Learn Are you receptive to what your audience can teach you? www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  24. Share Share www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  25. Share Communicating is an active process made up of three continuous and mutually reinforcing actions. Sharing, the final step in a virtuous circle, rarely succeeds fully until you have listened and learned first. Sharing is the active dissemination stage where your messages are delivered to, and received by, your key audiences. Sharing assumes many forms, channels, and routes, nearly all of which require the communicator to ultimately cede control of the message. www.com-matters.org Active, effective communication unfolds slowly, even when it is done masterfully. www.com-matters.org

  26. Share Share 1 in 10 Ratio of Americans who can give an example of a foundation s impact on an issue they care about. www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  27. Share Share 8 in 10 Ratio of Americans who think it would be a loss for their community if foundations no longer existed. www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  28. Share Share 65% Percentage of millennials who receive regular email or newsletters from 1 to 5 nonprofits. www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  29. Share Strategic communications raises the visibility of the issues we address, shines the light on organizations and leaders we value, and leverages the grant making investments made by the foundation. PROGRAM LEADER Private Foundation www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  30. Share If people we wish to impact don't understand the issue, what we are trying to change, or how it effects the society in which we live, we will never achieve lasting change. COMMUNICATION LEADER Private Foundation www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  31. Share We re dealing with policy makers who have limited knowledge about foundations. Many don t know what a foundation is or does, and that s our fault, not theirs. EXECUTIVE LEADER Private Foundation www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  32. Share Are you listening and learning before sharing? www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  33. Share What do you do to calibrate your content? www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

  34. Share How do you deal with messages that fail? www.com-matters.org www.com-matters.org

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