In our current world of chaos and meanness, we’re all searching for some quiet kindness and sanity. One of the places I know I can always find that is with my friend and business partner Kurt Steinbock. And that’s been a consistent in my life since the early 1990’s. Yes, that’s nearly 30 years of acceptance, trust, acute and astute listening from a truly kind human being.
Over the years I’ve come to appreciate the rarity that is finding someone who will really listen to what another person has to say – listening without judgement, without an ulterior motive, listening with respect for what someone is saying and why they’re saying it.
It’s an innate skill that Kurt has
and it translates from friendship to growing a business to interacting with clients. Kurt will listen carefully and quietly, allowing the speaker to explore and dig deep into their thoughts and feelings. Other than a visage of sympathy, empathy, understanding or seeking to understand, you won’t read an opinion on Kurt’s face. And that’s another rare gift – I imagine he’d be a hell of a poker player.
It’s only after you’ve finished fleshing out your thoughts that Kurt will begin to think about how to respond. And that will take time – with maybe a chuckle or sip of coffee (or beer) – time for Kurt to process what he’s heard and think very deeply about how to respond. And even then, he might respond with a request to think further about the topic or ask some clarifying questions before he shares his insights. But let me tell you,
they’re well worth waiting for.
I’ll share more about that another time. But for now, I want to let you know that if you’re looking for someone who will give his absolute attention and listen deeply without judgement, then Kurt’s your guy.