Emotional Intelligence

What is Emotional Intelligence?

It is the ability to properly monitor and manage your emotions in an intelligent way in order not to let them take over you or to affect your decision making process

It is also the ability to know or to understand the emotions of others in order to know the reasons behind their behavior and so be able to better communicate with them.

DefinitionDaniel Goleman, a

psychologist and behavioral science journalist, defines EI as:

“The capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those in others, for

motivating ourselves, for managing emotions well in ourselves and in our

relationships.”

Person with LOW EI :

Venting out anger at wrong places.Cracking jokes at funeral.Making Fun of people in depression.Arguing others in anger.

Person Having HIGH EI:

Can read body language and other non-verbal communications such as facial expressions.

Control and handle frustration, anger, sorrow, joy, and annoyance.

Recognizing and reacting to the impact that his or her words and actions may have.

Benefits of EI

It helps us to empathize with others, overcome challenges, and diffuse conflict.

Understand emotions of others.

Promotes rational thinking while emotional.

Why is emotional intelligence (EQ) so important?

As we know, it’s not the smartest people that are the most successful or the most fulfilled in life. You probably know people who are academically brilliant and yet are socially inept and unsuccessful at work or in their personal relationships. Intellectual intelligence or IQ isn’t enough on its own to be successful in life. IQ can help you get into college but it’s EQ that will help you with a good career. Combination of IQ and EI will be a killer dose for SUCCESS!

EI is the distinguishing factor that help us to maintain a warm relationship or a distant contacts.

Things Affected By EI

Your performance at work. Emotional intelligence can help you navigate the social complexities of the workplace, lead and motivate others, and excel in your career. In fact, when it comes to gauging job candidates, many companies now view emotional intelligence as being as important as technical ability and require EQ testing before hiring.

Your physical health. If you’re unable to manage your stress levels, it can lead to serious health problems. Uncontrolled stress can raise blood pressure, suppress the immune system, increase the risk of heart attack and stroke, contribute to infertility, and speed up the aging process. The first step to improving emotional intelligence is to learn how to relieve stress.

Your mental health. Uncontrolled stress can also impact your mental health, making you vulnerable to anxiety and depression. If you are unable to understand and manage your emotions, you’ll also be open to mood swings, while an inability to form strong relationships can leave you feeling lonely and isolated.

Your relationships. By understanding your emotions and how to control them, you’re better able to express how you feel and understand how others are feeling. This allows you to communicate more effectively and forge stronger relationships, both at work and in your personal life.

Have you come across these situations??…

Relationship Problems – when you fail to communicate what you need; when you lose the confidence of your team members; when you are acknowledged as – “never approachable”

Rage in the Workplace – Outburst of emotions

Poor decision making capability – Pre-occupied with frustrated thoughts

High rate of attrition in your team (healthy or bad!) – People start leaving you…not the job. Think! They start moving away from your vision

If you have Come across these situations then you need to develop EI.

How to Develop EI?

We can Develop emotional intelligence through five key skills:

Quickly reduce stress.Connect with others using nonverbal communication.Use humor and play to deal with challenges.Resolve conflicts positively and with confidence.

3 Steps to Deal in Emotionally Intelligent Way:

1. Perceive Emotion

2. Understand Emotion

3. Prioritize Your Reply

Measuring Emotional intelligence

Multifactor Emotional Intelligence Scale (MEIS)An ability-based test in which test-takers perform

tasks designed to assess their ability to perceive, identify, understand, and utilize emotions.

Seligman Attributional Style Questionnaire (SASQ)

Originally designed as a screening test for the life insurance company Metropolitan Life, the SASQ measures optimism and pessimism.

Can it be learnt at any age

The answer is yesYou can upgrade your skill at any stage of your lifeIn fact age and maturity are positively correlated with EIEmotional intelligence skills are making us effective in life challenges and useful for everybody.Useful for everyone who want to be happy and effective in life.

Developing Emotional Intelligence along with IQ can lead to success!