Have you ever heard of Emotional intelligence (EI)? If so, do you know what it is?
Emotional Intelligence (also known as Emotional Quotient) is a soft skill. It is the ability to recognize the different types of emotions one can experience. It is also the ability to control that emotion once you have identified it and quickly assess whether it is harmful or helpful.
You and I are emotional beings. It is through our emotions that we express ourselves—it is our way of communication. But left unattended, our emotions can destroy us.
That’s why some researchers claim that emotional intelligence (or emotional quotient) is just as important as IQ. EI will help you reach success in life.
The 4 Key Skills of Emotional Intelligence / Quotient
Self-awareness
This means being conscious of what is going on inside your heart and mind. You are aware of your thoughts and feelings.
Awareness is the first step towards any meaningful change. In the case of emotional intelligence, being self-conscious means being able to effectively interact with others and recognize the emotions in others, too.
You could call self-awareness as your ‘gut feeling’ that gives you signals whether you are making the right decisions or not. It is your intuition.
Self-management
This is your ability to manage your emotions well. It means having the discipline and balance to put your emotions in check and use what’s appropriate at a given time.
By honing your self-management skill, you learn to use your emotions to perform better at work, with your family, in school, in your business, or whatever it is you are trying to accomplish.
Self-management also means focusing on what needs to be done and getting it done rather than giving attention to feelings that do not accomplish the goal.
Social awareness
You and I are social beings as much as we are emotional beings. You may brand yourself an introvert or extrovert or ambivert—whatever it is, everyone needs someone to share their life with. As social beings, having social skills like social awareness will go a long way.
Social awareness talks about how you react to a situation in front of other people. It is easy to choose how to react when you are by yourself, but it is a different story when you are with other people.
By being socially aware, it means you notice the world around you. You do not react impulsively but consider the environment and the story behind why a situation is what it is. This makes you a great influence to others.
Relationship management
The fourth skill of emotional intelligence is relationship management. It is the ability to cultivate positive relationships with others. It also means the ability to respond to others’ emotions the right way.
For you to successfully manage your relationship with other people in all walks of life, you must learn to identify emotions when you see them. This is great especially when resolving a conflict.
Emotional Intelligence (or emotional quotient) matters whether you are an employee, a business owner, a mom, a dad—as long as you are a person—because it helps you in so many ways. You learn to:
- Think before you speak.
- Show empathy for others.
- Identify and control your own emotions—leaving no room for depression.
- Move on after you learn your lesson from a mistake instead of punishing yourself over and over.
- Listen to understand rather than listen to reply.
