What is Emotional Intelligence? How do we exercise it?
Emotional Intelligence is described as the capacity to identify , observe and manage the emotions of yourself and also read the emotions of others around you to engage in successful interactions and decision making.
American psychologist Daniel Goleman developed the model that Emotional Intelligence is based on five concepts. Goleman’s theory (cited in Cenere et al. 2015) explains these five key concepts as:
- Self-awareness
Self -aware people are confident, aware of their strengths and weaknesses and their decisions and judgments are not based upon their emotions. This trait is considered the one of the most important elements of emotional intelligence. - Self- regulation
Self-regulation is the ability to control emotions and impulses, and to avoid making negligent decisions that may occur from strong negative emotions. - Motivation
Motivation is a crucial skill in being able to set and attain goals. An emotionally intelligent person is typically productive and effective in their roles and will understand the short term sacrifices for long term goals. - Empathy
Empathy is the deliberate effort to understand the emotions, viewpoints and ideas of others. An empathetic person is highly skilled in handling their relationships and relating to people. - Social Skills
Having well developed social skills is another trait of emotional intelligence. A team focused person doesn’t focus on themselves first but more so on how they can help others (Cenere et al. 2015).
By understanding and applying these traits in communicative situations we are essentially exercising emotional intelligence.
In a business sense, one quality that a capable and influential leader should possess is the ability to persuade and push the team to complete a successful common objective. In order to accomplish this a team leader should also have an overall understanding of not only their own emotions but that too of the team members (Savel, R & Munro, C 2016).
Savel & Munro (2016, p. 105) suggest that ‘Emotionally intelligent leaders understand that their staff must be given a chance to own their emotions and work through their problems’.
Whilst emotional intelligence can appear to be quite a compound theory, there are simple ways to be mindful of your emotions and build your emotional intelligence, thus leading to more desirable outcomes and successful problem solving (Cenere et al. 2015). Cenere et al. (2015 , p. 210) suggests ways to build emotion intelligence : observe people’s emotions in their body language and expressions, be mindful of negative emotions and how to prevent them and also develop an understanding of emotional vocabulary.
This Infographic from University of Maryland’s Online MBA Program provides a further insight into Emotional Intelligence.
Figure 1: Emotional IQ and you / Source: University of Maryland
For more information ,here is a short video on Emotional Intelligence.
References
Brendon Gouveia 2013, Emotional Intelligence, video, 11 December, viewed 20 April, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weuLejJdUu0
Cenere, P, Gill, R, Lawson, C & Lewis, M 2015, Communication skills for business professionals, Cambridge University Press, Port Melbourne, Vic.
Savel, R & Munro, C 2016, ‘Emotional Intelligence: For the leader in us all’, American Journal of Critical Care; American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, Vol 25, No. 2, P104-106, viewed 20 April 2016, http://ajcc.aacnjournals.org/content/25/2/104
University of Maryland N.d, Emotional IQ and you, online image, viewed 20 April, http://onlinemba.umd.edu/resources/infographic/emotional-iq-and-you/
Rebecca Ward 