EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE – DEFINED
Your ability to perceive, understand and manage your own emotions and your capability of being aware of others’ especially in managing people is referred to as emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence can be defined as the ability to perceive, control, and evaluate emotions. Some researchers suggest that emotional intelligence can be learned and strengthened, while other claim it is an inborn characteristic.
We typically think of intelligence in terms of knowledge or cognitive reasoning ability, but this is another kind of intelligence, and it’s just as important, if not more, especially in a business environment. To be emotionally intelligent, you must be able to discern between different feelings and label them appropriately, use emotional information to guide thinking and behavior, and manage and/or adjust emotions to adapt to environments or achieve one’s goal(s). while studies have shown that people with high E.I. have greater mental health, job performance, and leadership skills, no causal relationships have been shown and such findings are likely to be attributable to general intelligence and specific personality traits rather than emotional intelligence as a construct.
According to entrepreneur.com. While it may seem like a phenomenal quality to have when managing personal relationships, but you’d be surprised to learn how much emotional intelligence can affect your productivity, as well. Below are tenets of emotional intelligence in the work place and importance of E.I.;
Tenets of Emotional Intelligence in The Workplace
Awareness and regulation. This is the introspective side of emotional intelligence. This dimension is all about your ability to recognize, analyze and respond to your internal emotions. For example, if your idea is laughed at by a group of people, emotional intelligence will enable you to recognize the frustration or humiliation you feel, and give you some level of control over that emotion.
Empathy. The second aspect is empathy, which allows you to internally feel what other people are feeling. This enables you to relate with others on a deeper and more reflective level, understanding their motivations and who they are as people.
Social skills. The is the last of the three, emotional intelligence gives you better social skills, since you can use your emotional understanding to regulate your response, adjust your tone for different target audiences and figure out the “right” thing to say in almost any situation.
Why Is emotional intelligence important for entrepreneurs?
Just as we have People with high emotional intelligence are good at reading people, navigating and understanding their own feelings and interacting with others. These are just four of the most important areas where emotional intelligence can help:
Stability. If you want to lead a team of employees — or manage a community of followers — you need to remain emotionally stable, even in times of crisis. Emotional intelligence helps you control anger, panic and despair, and remain calm no matter what.
Sales and Service. Understanding what people feel, why they feel it and what they want, or need is pivotal if you want to sell products and services that people really want. It can also help you close deals once the businesses gains momentum.
Motivation. Being able to relate to your employees and understand their feelings boosts morale and motivates those staffers to become more successful in your environment.
Mediation and Negotiation. Emotional intelligence also helps you resolve conflicts between and among employees or partners, and gives you an advantage when you’re attempting to negotiate.