How To Listen Effectively To Succeed Personally And Professionally: Authority Magazine Interview featuring Andrew C. Belton, MBA

The following is an interview by Douglas Noll with Authority Magazine!

View the original article here: Andrew C Belton of Symmetrical Media Marketing On How To Listen Effectively To Succeed Personally And Professionally

It’s hard to be a good listener. We are programmed to want to talk, and to share. It takes effort to stop and to listen. But anyone who has achieved great success will tell you that listening is such an important quality to have. What are some ways that influential people have learned to listen, to succeed both personally and professionally? As a part of this series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Andrew C. Belton.

Andrew C. Belton, MBA is a Marketing and Financial Services Professional, Writer and Owner of Symmetrical Media Marketing where he helps small businesses to create effective digital marketing strategies. He has been featured in LinkedIn News, LinkedIn Pulse, Startup Stash and Business2Community. He is a Philadelphia native, West Chester University of Pennsylvania graduate and is passionate about helping small businesses, education and challenging the limits of technology and communications.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we start, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood backstory?

I am a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania native and have spent my entire life close to the city. I love Philly, and as you may suspect, we love our sports, cheesesteaks, water ice, soft pretzels, Rocky Balboa and are proud of our history.

I grew up as an only child living with my parents and grandmother until I moved out during college. When I graduated from North Penn High School in 2014, I wasn’t exactly sure which career path I would take specifically but by that point I decided that it would be in business, following in the footsteps of my mother. I attended Montgomery County Community College and earned a Liberal Arts degree which allowed me to transfer to Delaware Valley University in 2016.

During my undergraduate career, I participated in a variety of organizations and experiences that helped to frame the career that I chose to pursue. At Montgomery County Community College, I served as the Chapter President of Phi Beta Lambda (also known as the Future Business Leaders of America) and was a member of the Phi Theta Kappa Academic Honor Society. At Delaware Valley University, I participated in 2 study abroad trips to Denmark, attended a week-long immersive leadership training experience called LeaderShape and served as the Vice President of the Business Club. I also created the digital marketing section of the business plan for the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Center at Delaware Valley University and served as the Administrator upon its launch. I worked a total of 5 internships during my undergraduate career, focusing primarily on Management and Marketing.

During the summer after my freshman year of college I worked a social media marketing internship at HR Tech Advisor where I studied and created social media marketing strategies with a focus in the B2B (business to business) sector. At that time in 2015 the B2B sector had a lack of understanding about how to leverage social media to reach decision-makers, build brand credibility and promote awareness. Once I completed the internship, I created my own unique social media marketing strategy designed primarily for the B2B industry called the Symmetrical B2B Social Media Marketing Strategy and launched my own social media marketing consulting company called Symmetrical Media Marketing.

Once I completed my Business Administration B.S. from Delaware Valley University, I secured a role at Vanguard as a Retirement Plan Specialist that I started in the Summer of 2018. As soon as I was eligible to start, I began a Masters of Business Administration program in 2019 at West Chester University of Pennsylvania. I knew that the MBA program was something that would help to open future professional opportunities and position myself as a leader in the industry. I was able to purchase my first home at the age of 23 and earn the MBA at the age of 25. Once I earned the MBA, I decided that it was time to pursue a career that I felt would be a better use of my skills, allow me to learn and pursue projects that I would be passionate about. Just under 2 months after graduation, I accepted a new role that met each of my interests, and allowed me to continue to operate my consulting company.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

“The road to success is not easy to navigate, but with hard work, drive and passion, it’s possible to achieve the American dream.” — Tommy Hilfiger

In a time where the American Dream may be lost to many people, I think this quote provides a positive and perceptive sentiment on what it takes to make the American Dream a reality. A modern take on the American Dream would be that it is the opportunity to achieve prosperity and success through hard work. As Hilfiger noted, it certainly isn’t an easy path and it typically isn’t direct meaning that some ‘trial and error’ may be needed to eventually go in the right direction. For example, when I accepted a role at Vanguard and was eventually promoted to Executive Retirement Specialist, I knew that I was not passionate about the industry, displeased with the unhealthy departmental culture and was not interested in continuing that role. However, I knew that the experiences that I gained there would better position me to pursue the kind of roles that I would be happy with. Once I gained enough industry experience and earned the MBA, I was quickly able to advance to a role where I was able to leverage the financial services experience that I had at Vanguard, while shifting my primary job function to a role that is centered around marketing and communications which I am very passionate about.

It is important to recognize that the American Dream is going to mean different things to different people. Judging our lives against others isn’t an effective way to pursue our own dreams. As Hilfiger noted, we need to use our drive and individual passions to make the American Dream a reality for ourselves. I am living my American Dream and I think that it is important to teach, inspire and assist other people on their path to achieving their own American Dream.

Is there a particular book, podcast, or film that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?

Invincible is a story that resonated with me. Invincible is a story about how Vince Papale transitioned from being a school teacher and bartender to becoming a player in the National Football League. He was the first player to make it into the NFL as a rookie at the age of 30 while not having any collegiate football experience or being selected in the NFL Draft. He beat all possible odds to walk onto the Philadelphia Eagles , after playing football in a smaller (defunct) league. He played 3 years with the Eagles and eventually became a Team Captain.

The story happened to take place around the time of when the original Rocky movie was released in 1976, and it was almost as if Papale was the real life Rocky Balboa. Papale’s journey to the NFL inspired the entire city and represented the ‘underdog’ reputation that the city of Philadelphia has earned over the years. As a huge football and Philly sports fan, his story resonated with me particularly regarding the level of dedication and resilience that he needed to display in order to be able to make the team and compete in the NFL. The people around him doubted him and didn’t think he could make it to the NFL, but he wouldn’t give up.

During my internship with the Central Bucks Chamber of Commerce, I attended a speaking engagement featuring Vince Papale where I was able to meet him, shake his hand and receive an autographed copy of his book. I will never forget that. It is truly an honor to be able to meet one of your heroes.

Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion. Let’s begin with a definition of terms so that each of us and our readers are on the same page. What exactly does being a good listener mean?

Being a good listener means being able to receive the information that is being provided to you, comprehending the information and being able to craft responses that will resonate with the person that you are communicating with. Effective listening will involve more than only listening as tone, facial expressions and gestures also play a role in being able to decipher the thoughts and emotions of the person that you are conversing with.

Why is effective listening such an important quality? Can you give a story or example to explain what you mean?

Effective listening is a fundamental element of communication and can have a profound impact on your personal and professional life. It is a skill that warrants our time and concentration to be able to develop and eventually master. One thing that has helped me has been to try to focus on absorbing what I am being told by the person that I am communicating with instead of trying to think about what I want to say while they are still talking. The ability to take the most relevant information from what another person is saying, comprehend the information and then respond based on that understanding is important for communicating effectively, speaking confidently and establishing rapport.

I worked with a client who was looking to change the administrative control of his LinkedIn company page to his personal account, but didn’t quite understand how the relationship between personal and company page accounts on LinkedIn worked. I have made this change on accounts multiple times in the past and understood the process, but it was very important that I listened to how he described it to then be able to understand what change needed to be made and how to do it. This also allowed me to explain to him the differences between a personal account and a LinkedIn company page, which enhanced his understanding of the matter. Once I helped him to make the change, he was appreciative that I was able to efficiently address his concern based on what he told me even though it wasn’t expressed in a way that reflected how the platform worked. Helping him to address the administrative account change also helped me to establish stronger rapport with him and bolstered his confidence in our ability to work together.

From your experience or perspective, what are some of the common barriers that hold someone back from being a good listener?

Having the right mindset is the key to being a good listener and effective communicator. If you are in an argumentative or confrontational mindset, it is going to be very difficult to focus on what the other person is saying to reach the point where the conversation will have any meaningful substance.

If you are in a transactional mindset (as is often seen in sales), it can be troublesome because failing to focus on what the speaker is telling you could cost you the opportunity to identify the key issues that you could help them to address. It could also prevent you from further business opportunities if you don’t keep an open mindset throughout your communications. Instead of focusing on what you are able to sell, focus on what pain-points the speaker is expressing, clearly identifying them to display comprehension and then discussing some options to be able to address the pain-points, while highlighting the benefits of your solution.

What are some practical techniques that have helped you become a more effective listener?

Consider how you could use the Pareto Principle to become a more effective listener. The Pareto Principle is a theory in which approximately 80% of consequences come from about 20% of causes. Whenever you are listening to someone, you should be trying to listen to everything that they are saying, but they likely are discussing a primary point and then providing context, reasoning and details around it. In this instance 20% of what they are expressing is the main point and 80% of what they are saying is context, reasoning and details. As you listen and reach the point where you begin to respond, make sure that you understand what that key 20% information is, and frame your responses in a way that will be relevant to it. If you don’t think that you have identified the main point, try to restate what the speaker has told you in the way that you understand it and then ask for clarification from them in order to make sure that your understanding is aligned. This will also demonstrate to them that you are making an effort to listen and are comprehending the message.

Oftentimes when I am consulting with small business owners I use a strategy similar to what I described above. Typically the discussion is led with me asking questions to the business owner to gain an understanding of their business, their existing digital marketing resources and goals. I am generally listening for about 80% of the time so that I can get the details necessary to help the business owner, while only speaking about 20% of the time oftentimes rephrasing what I was told to display comprehension while also drawing conclusions, presenting relevant information or alternate points of view. It helps to drive further engagement and oftentimes draws more relevant information from the business owner that otherwise probably wouldn’t have been discussed in the conversation. This is a great way to get information out of the speaker and will help you to have impactful conversations and build rapport quickly.

Here is the central question of our discussion. What are five ways that listening effectively can help someone succeed personally and professionally? If you can, please share a story or an example for each.

1 . Be adaptable: Go into each conversation with an open mind, while still focusing on the objective. Be open to change, but also be intentional. There have been many occasions in the past where my willingness to be adaptable has helped myself and whoever I am working with to succeed and look good in the process.

2 . Be mindful of context: If you feel as though you do not have enough information to make a conversation impactful, ask probing questions. Use probing questions that are catered to the nature of the conversation to get the background information that you need to have an informed and meaningful conversation.

3 . Establish rapport: In my experience, the flow of a conversation is generally more fluid once some rapport is established. It is also more likely to result in its intended goal whether it just be an exploratory conversation or a sale. If you are struggling to establish rapport, ask a question to the speaker that they would likely be happy to answer. People love talking about themselves, things that they are passionate about or believe in. Use that to build rapport and guide the conversation back to the main topic once it is established.

4 . Focus on the main topic: Even though oftentimes conversations may stray from the primary topic, it is essential to remain focused on the main topic and get the information from the speaker that is most relevant towards it. Once you have determined what the primary message is, use the rest of the information that is being provided to be able to identify details and consider context. This will help you to have a more impactful conversation centered around the main topic.

5 . Continuous improvement: One of the most important principles for success in business and life is continuous improvement. The ability to adapt, innovate and advance can make a life-or-death difference in your business and career. The world around us is changing everyday, and with technology altering industries and advancing at the rate that it is, we need to be willing to learn and grow if we want to remain relevant professionally and advance. Try to listen to skilled public speakers, practice your comprehension, learn different communication styles, attend a public speaking class or seminar.

Never stop learning. Never stop improving. Continuously evaluate how to be better.

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?

I would love to see the educational system in the United States reformed.

I think that primary schools should do their utmost to provide classes that are designed to give students a jump-start on their careers whether they be vocational or focused on topics that students will have to take as soon as they transition to college. For example, when I attended North Penn High School, I was able to take a Business Administration class during my senior year that transferred as an approved 3 credit college class through a relationship that the school has with Gwynedd Mercy University.

With the cost of education rising, federal and state financial aid has become increasingly important and even though the United States does not have a free secondary education system, I think that free Community College is something that could be a reality at some point. There are many states that have a version of it, which I would love to see expanded on a federal level at some point.

Reforming the educational system in the United States would profoundly improve the quality of life for millions of Americans by creating the access that many people would otherwise not have. Programs that are designed to provide welfare are only treating a symptom, whereas programs that are designed to provide access are facilitating a sustainable societal cure.

The impact that my teachers and professors had throughout my life made an incredible impression on me and has inspired me to potentially pursue a teaching role as a professor later in my career.

Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have lunch with, and why? Maybe we can tag them and see what happens!

I would love to have lunch with Josh Harris . He is the Co-Founder of Apollo Global Management Inc, Founder & Co-Chairman of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment and Founder of 26North. He is also the Managing Partner of my favorite sports team, the Philadelphia 76ers . He is involved with a variety of philanthropic programs and has earned a reputation as a community leader that displays an unwavering dedication to the success of the teams that he manages and the cities that he works with.

I recently wrote an article about ’76 Place at Market East’, a new arena that Harris is working to bring to the city of Philadelphia alongside 76 Devcorp Chairman David Adelman . My article was recently shared by David Adelman and 76 Devcorp, the organization overseeing the new arena project. As a 76ers fan and Philadelphia native, I am very excited for the new project in addition to the numerous benefits that it will provide to the city and communities throughout the region.

How can our readers continue to follow your work online?

The best way to connect with me is on LinkedIn and Twitter. Don’t be shy! Please send a message and say hello. I love meeting new people, discussing the projects that I am working on and connecting with fellow or aspiring business leaders. On the Symmetrical Media Marketing website I provide a variety of digital marketing resources that can be helpful for businesses of all sizes and I write a variety of blog articles on topics such as marketing news, digital marketing resources, small business insights, entrepreneurship and the labor market.

You can also visit my website andrewcbelton.com to learn more about what I am working on.

Visit my Medium.com page to read my articles.

Thank you so much for sharing these important insights. We wish you continued success and good health!

Thank you for this amazing opportunity, I am very appreciative. Good luck with all your future endeavors!

Special thanks to Authority Magazine !

About the Interviewer: Douglas E. Noll, JD, MA was born nearly blind, crippled with club feet, partially deaf, and left-handed. He overcame all of these obstacles to become a successful civil trial lawyer. In 2000, he abandoned his law practice to become a peacemaker. His calling is to serve humanity, and he executes his calling at many levels. He is an award-winning author, teacher, and trainer. He is a highly experienced mediator. Doug’s work carries him from international work to helping people resolve deep interpersonal and ideological conflicts. Doug teaches his innovative de-escalation skill that calms any angry person in 90 seconds or less. With Laurel Kaufer, Doug founded Prison of Peace in 2009. The Prison of Peace project trains life and long terms incarcerated people to be powerful peacemakers and mediators. He has been deeply moved by inmates who have learned and applied deep, empathic listening skills, leadership skills, and problem-solving skills to reduce violence in their prison communities. Their dedication to learning, improving, and serving their communities motivates him to expand the principles of Prison of Peace so that every human wanting to learn the skills of peace may do so. Doug’s awards include California Lawyer Magazine Lawyer of the Year, Best Lawyers in America Lawyer of the Year, Purpose Prize Fellow, International Academy of Mediators Syd Leezak Award of Excellence, National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals Neutral of the Year. His four books have won a number of awards and commendations. Doug’s podcast, Listen With Leaders, is now accepting guests. Click on this link to learn more and apply.