Listening Happens In Many Ways

It’s not just with our ears.

Listening isn’t only what we hear. 

Listening happens through other senses and ways, as well.

It happens through our eyes, in what we see and notice. It happens through our hearts, in what we feel and sense. It happens through our minds, in what we discern and reason. It happens through our spirits, in what we are moved and touched by. 

Listening  - getting to know someone more deeply and intentionally - happens in ways we often do not consider.

Someone To Tell It To is trying to redefine and expand what we believe listening is. If we want to have greater and more satisfying human connections, we need to understand that listening is far more than what it has traditionally been defined and perceived as. 

This past season of the Someone To Tell It To Podcast gave us the opportunity to have in-depth and fascinating conversations with others who are helping to broaden the definition of what listening is. Here are five of them, who in their own large and small ways, are making an impact through their creative work:

Ingrid C. Nordli, who is an associate professor in linguistics at The University of Tromsø – The Arctic University of Norway, the world's northernmost university, located in Tromsø, North-Norway, above the Arctic Circle. 

Our conversation with Dr. Nordli focused on her years of experience researching, teaching, and writing about how children uniquely listen and how adults can better listen to them. A communications and linguistics expert, Ingrid spoke with us about the music of language and how, with its distinct rhythms, melodies, and harmonies, we can learn to respect the perspectives, the beautiful innocence, and the dignity of children - and the dignity of persons of every age, for that matter. 

Ed Miller, who is a Customer Success Manager at Submittable, a platform supporting grantmaking and scholarship organizations, where he builds strong relationships and solves problems for a living. He discovered Someone to Tell It To during a challenging leadership stretch and found it incredibly helpful and refreshingly human. Ed is a recent transplant to New York City, who also is an actor and writer. He believes that good conversations and a hearty laugh can change everything — and he’s always up for both. Through theater and the written word, Ed believes that we can learn more about human emotions, dreams, and yearnings, which can create greater human connections and deeper relationships among us.

In his episode, we had a thoughtful and laugh-filled conversation in which we talk about travel and his life experiences, and Ed believes the place where you feel safe is where you are most “at home”.

Sandi Smith, who is an entrepreneur - the creator of Sandi's Breads - a Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, area bakery, where fresh milled flour and only simple, natural grains - full of the vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats that nourish your body - are used. Her bakery is more than simply a bakery; it’s the vehicle for fostering relationships and treating customers, not as transactions to make a profit, but as friends to form meaningful relationships with. And just as importantly for us, Sandi is one of Someone To Tell It To’s trained compassionate listeners. We can also attest that she is a tremendous example of one who embodies the values and virtues of what good, intentional, and compassionate listening is all about - as well as baking fresh, healthy, and delicious breads and pastries. Sandi sees each of her customers and employees as friends and part of a family of people who care about one another and show their care in every interaction they have, making connections far beyond the breads and pastries.

Alex Ross-Reed, describes themself as a soul having a human experience on planet earth, who seeks connection, works for peace, learns from observing others, creates, plays and loves every day. Alex believes that art saves lives, that it speaks to the human spirit in ways that words cannot. Alex lives, connects, and creates in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, joining in the larger community working for justice, seeking cooperation, modeling creativity, and supporting young people and their families. Alex has led HEAL Plus NM, for 12 years in developing resources for LGBTQIA2S+ folks and their loved ones. Alex is most proud of a recent collaboration - Queer Futures Now - a play and curriculum for parents and caregivers of those in the LGBTQ IA2S+ community. 

Benjamin Wagner, who has worked for over 30 years at the intersection of media and technology as an award-winning journalist and documentarian. In May 2026, Benjamin’s newest documentary, Friends & Neighbors, premiered nationwide in the United States and Canada. The film weaves together moments from his own life and career with the broader social forces around us, asking what’s broken, what it costs us, and what real healing could look like in an anxious and uncertain world.                                                           Because of Someone To Tell It To’s co-production of the play, I’m Proud of You, in the spring of 2025, Benjamin connected with our mission and invited a collaboration with us. He did what his hero, Fred Rogers, who supported Benjamin during a traumatic period in his life, always urged him to do. He went looking for the helpers. In the film, he listens to people who are quietly rebuilding their communities from the inside out. The helpers. The ones trying to make things whole again in an anxious, uncertain world.

If you haven’t heard these episodes yet, we invite you to listen to our conversations with these remarkable people who are doing remarkable things to connect us as human beings and to enhance all of our lives. 

Listening well transforms both the listener and the person being listened to. We learn from each other. We grow closer together with each other. We come to a greater understanding with each other. When we can connect on deeper human levels, we all thrive more and live more joyfully and fully. Recognizing that listening comes in many different forms beyond what we hear from our ears. When we recognize that, our ability to understand more and connect in greater ways only becomes stronger and more satisfying.