by Anna Ortynska In consulting, listening is often treated as a soft skill. Something you either “have” or you “don’t.” In reality, it’s a core business capability because most strategic mistakes don’t happen due to lack of intelligence or data — they happen because leaders and consultants solve the wrong problem. And more often than not, that starts with not really hearing what’s actually being said. Early in my career, I thought I was a strong listener. I asked the right qu