Billionaire Richard Branson Calls This 1 Skill the Most Important Skill Every Leader Should Have

By Marcel Schwantes

Sir Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, explains the critical skill that makes the world go around.

Billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson is a quote machine who believes that, of all the skills a leader can possess, communication is the most important one. In a Virgin blog he wrote some years ago, he said:

Communication makes the world go round. It facilitates human connections, and allows us to learn, grow, and progress. It's not just about speaking or reading, but understanding what is being said -- and in some cases what is not being said. Communication is the most important skill any leader can possess.

Most people think of communication in the speaking sense of the word. Yet Branson stresses the part of communication most leaders fail to master: "understanding what is being said." This is the essence of powerful listening -- the other side of the communication equation. And without it, you cannot be a good leader.

In his appreciation of the art of communication, Branson quotes ten other luminaries on the topic. One of them is Larry King, the late television and radio host legend, who said, "I remind myself every morning: Nothing I say this day will teach me anything. So if I'm going to learn, I must do it by listening."

The truth about leadership

Listen before speaking.

The plain truth about good leadership can be summed up in three simple words:

And I do mean listen--with your ears, not your eyes. The digital era is causing a slow degeneration in our ability to verbally communicate beyond the convenient means of texting, email, and 140 characters on a tiny screen. With each generation entering the workforce, and with our current hybrid and remote work models, we are becoming increasingly lazy and diminishing our own ability to verbally engage and listen to colleagues and customers when necessary.

The other truth about leadership is that you must actively listen to the people you lead -- with your whole head and heart -- to have influence and build trust with them. When assessing my coaching clients' employee engagement reports, the mistake I see most often cited in high-level managers is their lack of listening skills. 

Active listening is one of the least taught skills in leadership, yet it's the most utilized. Many studies have pointed out that we spend the majority of our waking hours in some form of communication, and of that time, nearly half is spent listening.

And while many leaders assume they're good listeners, studies confirm that most of us are poor and inefficient listeners. When you talk to your boss, co-workers, or customers for 10 minutes, studies say you pay attention to less than half of the conversation. Within 48 hours, whatever information we've retained decreases to 25 percent. In other words, we often comprehend and retain only one-fourth of what we hear!

The best way to develop your listening skills

As a leader, building up your active listening skills is crucial for solving problems, building trust, and winning the hearts and minds of people. One way to learn to do it well is to listen to understand first.

Legendary management guru Peter Drucker once said, "The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn't said." It's important to be able to know what's going on with the other person by reflecting back on what you heard to clarify ("What I hear you saying is ... ") and asking questions to probe the other person's feelings or opinions on the topic of conversation. Probing can be as simple as "Tell me how you feel about this."

This is the essence of empathic listening. It's the skill of extending yourself for others by really seeing things as they see it, and feeling things as they feel them. This means emptying yourself out completely from the noise and chatter in your own head. It means becoming fully present and mindful of the other person. It means refraining from making or preparing to make a response. When you park your thoughts and are present to the other person, you're not distracted by the need to explain, defend, or fix.

Yeah, it's hard work, but I know this to be one of the best ways to build trust with another person. It is mastering of what Sir Richard Branson referred to as "understanding what is being said -- and in some cases what is not being said."