Yes I know that we usually think of interviews as us doing all the talking, but the reality is different. At least 40% of the time we should be listening, and what we hear will have an enormous effect on what we say.

So listening well is a most important interview skill.

But why do so many of us find it difficult to listen well? After all, so long as our hearing is not actually impaired we can hear most of what is going on around us. However many of us will find listening difficult for a number of reasons:

if there is anything we might consider unusual, or irritating about the speaker's appearance, voice, accent or pronunciation we allow it to put us off;

we naturally think at about four or five times the speed at which we think, so when someone else is doing the talking we can find a lot of time to allow our minds to wander;

our own thoughts are generally of more concern to us and we find it easier and more pleasant to tune in to these than concentrating on what someone else is saying;

since we were quite young we have taught ourselves to listen to many things at once, and actually pay only the minimum attention to any of them, so it becomes difficult to pay attention to one thing for a longer period of time;

as soon as we think we've heard enough to establish in our minds what response is needed, we stop listening to the speaker and start composing our answer.

Misunderstandings arise from failing to pay full attention in many situations, but in the interview it could cost you the job you really wanted.