emotional intelligence
DEVELOP EMPATHY AND INCREASE YOUR EMOTIONAL AGILITY FOR LEADERSHIP. IMPROVE YOUR SOCIAL SKILLS TO BE SUCCESSFUL AT WORK AND DISCOVER WHY IT CAN MATTER MORE THAN IQ | EQ 2.0
BRANDON BRADBERRY
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction
E motional Intelligence is the ability to be aware, understand, and control personal emotions. A person with emotional intelligence is also able to understand others emotions and feel them as if they were the ones going through such emotions. Emotional intelligence involves some skills which are:
Emotional awareness: this is the skill that helps you realize your emotions in terms of what exactly are you feeling. Most people are not aware of their emotions and for this, they cannot tell when they are happy, sad, angry or depressed. If you need to work on yourself, you need to be aware of what exactly you are going through. You are also able to explain to others exactly what they put you through, something most people struggle with. When you can describe your emotions, others will know how to handle you or even know how to help you overcome the emotions. Emotional intelligence goes beyond personal awareness because just as you are able to label your emotions, you are also able to label the emotions of others around you. You will be aware when they are happy or when they need your help because you can tell their emotions.
Understanding- once you are aware of your emotions, it is easier to understand them in terms of what causes them, and how often they recur. This means that when dealing with others, you will be able to understand what will cause them pain or what will restore their joy. This means that as a person with high EQ, you are empathetic towards others and once in a while, you will have to put yourself in their shoes. By doing this, you will now be in a position to view things in their eyes and therefore understand them better as individuals without being too judgmental.
Control- when you are aware and understand the emotions you and the people in your life go through, you are then able to control them. You avoid situations that will provoke the anger in you and avoid people who bring out the worst in you. When dealing with others, you are also able to avoid doing or saying things that will provoke them. You are not only able to regulate the emotions you go through and those of others but you are able to look for solutions. You are now in a position where you can help yourself and others become better than the emotions coming your way. Usually, what this entails is anger management, knowing how to deal when anger strikes you or the people around you. This then means that once in a while, you will need to be flexible and adapt to people with different ideologies from yours and be open-minded. It also means that you have to take responsibility when necessary and also be trustworthy and practice integrity.
Social skills- a person who has a high EI is able to communicate better with others. They are better listeners as well, and people find it easier to confide in them. Communication skills are also paramount in the workplace since you will the negotiation skills to persuade and maintain clients. This skill also makes people with high EI become better problem solvers and are able to solve conflicts amongst themselves or between other people.
Most critics of emotional intelligence argue that it does not exist simply because it cannot be measured like the Intelligent Quotient. They, therefore, argue that emotional intelligence is just an interpersonal skill that is being labeled differently. However, emotional intelligence continues to be very popular and proves that, indeed, being emotionally intelligent is much needed in every human being who wants to succeed all around.
According to the World economic forum, emotional intelligence is number six out of the ten skills that people need if they desire to work in their workplace. It is for this reason that most employers have introduced emotional intelligence tests as part of job interviews. This is because people with high intelligence are the best team leaders that any organization can hire. An emotionally intelligent employee also performs better than any other employee and that is why it is important to find employees who have some level of emotional intelligence. Emotion intelligence also consists of social skills that help you deal with your family, friends, workmates and even in your relationships. The reason why some people are able to make friendships so quickly but are unable to maintain the networks is that they lack social skills from emotional intelligence. People who have high emotional intelligence are able to relate better with their friends and their relationships work better since they understand the people in their lives. This is because when a person who has a high emotional intelligence is dealing with people, they are able to identify things that will frustrate them and therefore, will keep away from them. On the other hand, people with high emotional intelligence are able to tell when someone is being overly sensitive and will be able to keep away from them until they are calm and reasonable.
EI gives everyone the ability to find joy in every situation. For this reason, experts seem to insinuate that emotional intelligence is much important than IQ. This is because while IQ is all about the brain and how smart one is in school or in taking exams, EI is all about overall success as an individual. You will succeed in school, family, work, your health, and in your relationship when you apply EI.
It is important that you know having a high EI doesnt make you different from others. You will still be predisposed to both negative and positive emotions. Anyone who wants to achieve emotional intelligence has to work hard within themselves to ensure that they are only entertaining positive thoughts. Whenever negative thoughts strive, one should be able to reframe to positive thoughts. To achieve this, you have to ensure that you are always trying to be a better person each day. Its not going to be easy, but everyone can be emotionally intelligent since it is a skill that can be learned.
Characteristics of Emotional Intelligence
A Great overall balance- being able to strike a balance of all the activities you need to do every day can be overwhelming. Sometimes because of how much is expected of a person, people sometimes easily become stressed. An emotionally intelligent person is able to overcome that by finding a balance that will allow them to find peace and happiness despite the hard circumstances. When such a person realizes that work, relationships are getting them worked up. They know how to step back, take a break, and find themselves first. On the other hand, when there is a lack of emotional intelligence, people will get worked up by every little thing because they do not the time to play and the time to work. Such people will continue doing the same thing over and over instead of finding something different or a different strategy. This is because they are not aware of how much that is affecting their emotions and they will there be always angry and frustrated. Therefore if you find someone who is always able to strike a balance in everything and is always happy even when everything is not working out, that is someone with a high EI.
Great Focus: Ever seen people who are easily distracted at anything they do? One minute they are so focused, and then after a small distraction, they are no longer as focused? That is someone who is controlled by their emotions. Such people will only work depending on their current moods. If they are angry at someone in their workplace who is in their team, they will refuse to work with that person simply because they are angry. This will then affect their performance because they have allowed their emotions to control them. People with high EI, on the other hand, are always focused no matter how overwhelming their work is. Sometimes there is so much to do that it may lead to confusion as you do not know what to do or where to start and that can bring worry which will cause distractions. The difference between those who lack high EI and those who have it is that those who do have what we call laser focus.
