The gift of listening is more than hearing someone else. It’s being radically present to what they are saying so that you can empathize with them, feel with them, and be with them.

This is an act of love and recognition. This is high art.

Nicholas Whitaker’s superhero power is the Art of Listening, it is a gift earned out of survival.  And he turned it into a practice of thriving by giving himself fully to the moment, the other person, and himself.

Nicholas has years of experience as a coach, in running meditation and mindfulness programs for a large technology company, as a documentary film maker, and now as a co-founder of a company that is attempting to create generative workplaces.

Nicholas’ mission is to help others alleviate their suffering, and he does this by helping them activate their authentic selves.

He’s using a superhero power that he learned very early on as a way to safely navigate his world.

And now he’s using that same superhero power to help thousands not just survive in the world, but to thrive in their world.

Nicholas’s framework for listening with radical presence:
 1. Arrive with curiosity and compassion for oneself and others
 2. Have an intention for how you want to show up in the conversation
 3. Holding space: allow people to be heard and not try to fix their problems
 4. Have compassion for both yourself and the other person

Curiosity, compassion, and love. These ingredients are showing up in many of these conversations, they are the salt, garlic, and olive oil of meaningful relationships.

In this episode, Nicholas answers the following questions:
 - How to be a good listener?
 - How to create a container for listening?
 - How to show up with empathy and compassion?
 - How to improve my listening skills?

Resources mentioned in this episode are available on the episode webpage at https://whatdoyouknowtobetrue.com/nicholaswhitaker
- Nicholas' coaching company
- Nicholas' company, Changing Work Collective
- Book: "Strength to Strength" by Arthur C Brooks
- Book: "Unwinding Anxiety" by Judson Brewer

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Music in this episode created by Ian Kastner.

"What Do You Know To Be True?" is a series of conversations where I speak with interesting people about their special talent or superhero power and the meaningful impact it has on others. The intention is to learn more about their experience with their superhero power, so that we can learn something about the special talent in each of us which allows us to connect more deeply with our purpose.

"What Do You Know To Be True?" is hosted by Roger Kastner, is a production of Three Blue Pens, and is recorded on the ancestral lands of the Duwamish and Suquamish people. To discover the ancestral lands of the indigenous people whose land you may be on, go to: https://native-land.ca/