Tweet

The Buzz About Emotional Intelligence

Guest post by: Pramila Mathew

Article Overview: This article will help readers understand Emotional Intelligence – what it is, and how developing emotional intelligence can help in accelerating and sustaining success.

The Buzz About Emotional Intelligence

According to Wikipedia, Emotional Intelligence describes the ability, capacity or skill to manage the emotions of oneself, of others and of groups.

In 1985, Wayne Leon Payne initially coined the term "Emotional Intelligence" in his doctoral thesis, A Study of Emotion: Developing Emotional Intelligence. But it was not until the publication of Daniel Goleman's bestseller Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ that the term became widely popularized. Ever since, there has been widespread interest in Emotional Intelligence (EI), and Emotional Quotient, as it is also known, has taken precedence over Intelligence Quotient (IQ) in management circles around the world.

In his book on EI, Daniel Goleman explains how understanding Emotional Intelligence is increasingly relevant to organizational development, HR activities and developing people. (For a brief introduction to EI, watch a video of Daniel Goleman's talk at Google

Through his years of research as a psychologist and a science journalist, Goleman developed a framework to explain emotional intelligence in terms of five elements viz. fire, water, earth, wood and metal. He described each of them in terms of:

a) Self-regulation

b) Self-awareness

c) Motivation

d) Empathy and

e) Social skills

a) Self-regulation: Also understood as self restraint, it includes controlling and retaining one's emotions.

b) Self-awareness: Individuals high on self assessment/awareness will be aware of their own strengths and weaknesses, and be self confident about their own goals, capabilities and values.

c) Motivation: Individuals who are high on EQ are always motivated and enjoy stimulation and challenge. They are initiators and optimistic about life and its challenges.

d) Empathy: Empathy is the ability to see other people's points of view. Individuals high on EQ are honest with themselves and others.

e) Social skills: Individuals with good social skills have the capacity to initiate and manage change. More importantly, they have the ability to deal with the emotions of others. This helps in managing group dynamics and inter-organizational communication.

All the above points indicate that Emotional Intelligence can definitely make a difference in the manner in which success is achieved. Hence people who demonstrate these characteristics are more likely to be successful in senior management. To prove his point, Goleman has cited research from various sources which suggests that senior managers with a higher emotional intelligence rating perform better than those with a lower EQ.

Next featured article: How does working with emotional intelligence help us in daily life?

Emotional Intelligence skills can be consistently worked upon through self awareness brought about by Emotional Intelligence Training. MMM Training Solutions believes that Emotional Intelligence Coaching can help individuals succeed in all areas of life and make them well balanced individuals.

Related Articles
  Hiring and Promoting Emotional Intelligence
  Leading companies “mining” workforce for emotional intelligence
  How Does Working With Emotional Intelligence Help Us In Daily Life?
  3 Ways To Improve Your Emotional Intelligence
  Emotional Intelligence and Performance
  EI - The Most Powerful Tool in Your Kit
  Leadership Truth #5 - Great Leaders Have High Emotional Intelligence
  Social Emotional Intelligence in Leadership
  IQ vs. EQ - Which Can Determine Your Success
  What is Emotional Intelligence?
  The essence of the soft stuff
  Emotional Intelligence (EI) and Leadership
  How People Experience Work Shapes Your Organization’s Culture
  Financial Intelligence
  Searching for Executive Presence
  How Inspired Leadership Creates Dream Jobs
  Boost Your Emotional Intelligence
  What is Emotional Intelligence?
  Emotional Intelligence – The Hard Truth About Soft Skills
  Betterment is a way to lead…

Article Tags: developing emotional intelligence, Emotional Intelligence, emotional intelligence coaching, emotional intelligence leadership, emotional intelligence skills, emotional intelligence training, working with emotional intelligence



Related Forum Posts
Re: LEADERS - Nice post, i like the Doers and the listeners comments from my handbook 8.5 HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW ABOUT LEADERSHIP? Planning Problem Solving Vision Innovation Leadership Emotional Intelligence Delegation Communication Self-Development Relationship Building Commercial Financial skills Personal Energy Ethics Transparency Even there I see that we are missing "PASSION"
Re: Google Buzz - Any Thoughts? - [quote="Trent Brownrigg":suimkaob]I'm not too big into these social sites but Buzz looks to be just as good as the next. I have started using it more and more.[/quote:suimkaob] How are you finding it Trent. I haven't got around to it yet have been very busy with offline work and so my time has been limited and have used it adding more articles etc to my website. Still have Buzz on my to do list. MichelleJ
Re: Google Buzz - Any Thoughts? - [quote="MichelleJ":3u0447fv][quote="Trent Brownrigg":3u0447fv]I'm not too big into these social sites but Buzz looks to be just as good as the next. I have started using it more and more.[/quote:3u0447fv] How are you finding it Trent. I haven't got around to it yet have been very busy with offline work and so my time has been limited and have used it adding more articles etc to my website. Still have Buzz on my to do list. MichelleJ[/quote:3u0447fv] It seems to be similar to Twitter but you are not limited in length on what you write and people can directly reply to your updates kind of like on Facebook. It's sort of a cross between the two. I like it better than Twitter but not as much as Facebook so it's somewhere in between in my opinion.
Re: Google Buzz - Any Thoughts? - I'm not too big into these social sites but Buzz looks to be just as good as the next. I have started using it more and more.
Re: Google Buzz - Any Thoughts? - Hi Alfanzo, Yes, I have heard that some people are looking towards Google Buzz as an alternative to Facebook because it has better privacy settings.


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Work at Home Moms and Their Bad Rap?

Common Sense Stress Management

Emotional Energy is Our Engine

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.