Emotional intelligence is defined as the ability to understand and manage our own emotions, as well as recognise and influence the emotions of those around us. The term was first coined in 1990 by researchers John Mayer and Peter Salovey, but was later popularised by Psychologist Daniel Goleman.
Today’s scenario managing our emotions is as important as showcasing how intelligent you are.
Emotional intelligence is typically broken down into four core competencies:
Self-awareness
Self-management
Social awareness
Relationship management
In order to improve your emotional intelligence, it’s important to understand what each element entails. Here is a closer look at the four categories:
1. Self-Awareness
Self-awareness is at the core of everything. It describes your ability to not only understand your strengths and weaknesses, but to recognise your emotions. In stressful situations, how much you know about your emotions during such situations, awareness about all those feelings and behaviours are important.
In order to bring out the best in others, you first need to bring out the best in yourself, which is where self-awareness comes into play. One easy way to assess your self-awareness is by completing 360-degree feedback, in which you evaluate your performance. Through this process, you will gain insights into your own behavior and discover how you are perceived in the organisation.
2. Self-Management
Self-management refers to the ability to manage your emotions, particularly in stressful situations, and maintain a positive outlook despite setbacks. It’s important to remember to pause, breathe, collect yourself, and do whatever it takes to manage your emotions whether that means taking a walk or calling a friend so that you can more appropriately and intentionally respond to stress and adversity.
3. Social Awareness
While it’s important to understand and manage your own emotions, you also need to know how to read others emotions. Social awareness describes your ability to recognise others’ emotions and the dynamics in play within your organisation. By communicating with empathy, you can better support others while improving your individual performance.
4. Relationship Management
Relationship management refers to your ability to influence, coach, and mentor others, and resolve conflict effectively. Some prefer to avoid conflict, but it’s important to properly address issues as they arise.