Emotional intelligence (EI), refers to our ability to understand our emotions, manage them properly, and recognize emotions in others. The idea of emotional intelligence was first explored in the 1960s by Michael Beldoch. Later, in 1983, Howard Gardner published his work on multiple intelligences, which included interpersonal (the ability to understand others’ feelings) and intrapersonal (the ability to understand one’s own emotions) intelligences. A year later, Keith Beasley coined the term Emotional Quotient (EQ). In subsequent years, Peter Salovey and John D. Mayer developed the Ability Model, which involves four interrelated capacities: perceiving emotions, using emotions to facilitate thinking, understanding emotions, and managing emotions – all impacting how we navigate our social environments.
It wasn’t until 1995 that psychologist Daniel Goleman popularized the concept of EI with his best-selling book, Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ. In it, Goleman synthesized a vast number of research findings that point to the importance of EI in people’s success and happiness. Importantly, he also presented evidence to argue that EI can be learned and improved upon.
Goleman later developed a model of EI that combines personal and social competencies. He argues that there are five main components to EI:
- Self-awareness: the ability to understand what we are feeling and why.
- Self-management (or self-regulation): the ability to control our emotions so that they serve their purpose without taking control over us.
- Empathy: the ability to understand what others are feeling and how best to accommodate our actions and reactions to others’ needs.
- Motivation: our ability to focus our efforts on intrinsic motivators rather than external factors such as money or recognition.
- Relationship management (or social skills): our ability to connect with others and sustain meaningful relationships through the other four factors that make up EI.
In more recent years, Goleman adapted and expanded upon his framework, offering 12 main components that we can focus on to increase our EI.
Other experts who have made significant contributions to the understanding and application of EI in various domains, including leadership, education, and personal growth, include:
- Konstantinos V. Petrides, who conceptualized a distinction between ability and trait (or personality-based) models of EI.
- Richard Boyatzis, who developed the concept of resonant leadership and emphasized the importance of EI for effective management.
- Marc Brackett, the founding director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence.
- Travis Bradberry and Jean Greaves, who wrote Emotional Intelligence 2.0 – a book about strategies and techniques for developing EI in the workplace.
Under the scope of Goleman’s framework, the role of EI is crucial in fostering personal growth and career development. By being aware of how emotions impact thoughts and behaviors, we can gain insights into our patterns and make conscious choices for personal growth. EI is also related to controlling impulsive reactions, managing stress, and maintaining a balanced emotional state. By practicing self-regulation, we can respond to situations more constructively and adaptively, enabling personal development and resilience. Through empathy, we can expand our own perspectives, enhance our problem-solving skills, and build positive relationships. Doing so requires effective communication, active listening, and conflict management skills, all of which relate to EI. Ultimately, understanding and managing emotions can help us bounce back from failures and learn from experiences. And by aligning our emotions with our values and aspirations, we can better identify personally fulfilling and motivating goals.
EI is also essential to developing leadership and management skills. As Goleman argues, EI enhances self-awareness, empathy, communication, conflict resolution, decision-making, and stress management skills. These qualities contribute to a positive work environment, foster strong relationships, and drive team performance.
More specifically, leaders with a high EI:
- Understand their emotions, strengths, and weaknesses. This allows them to make wiser decisions and manage their teams more effectively.
- Understand and empathize with team members and stakeholders, which best informs their decision-making in regard to both the team’s well-being and the company’s goals.
- Foster positive relationships; create a supportive work environment; and motivate collaboration, engagement, and productivity through meaningful connections.
- Express their ideas, thoughts, and feedback clearly, and actively listen to others and understand their needs. They are great at promoting open dialogue.
- Manage and resolve conflicts effectively. They can understand the underlying emotions and perspectives of conflicting parties, facilitating more constructive discussions and finding win-win solutions.
- Remain composed and focused in the face of challenges and inspire confidence in their team members so that they can cope better and overcome any setbacks more rapidly and effectively.
In short, EI refers to the understanding of emotions to the degree that it positively impacts decisions and behavior, nurturing personal growth as well as career development and managerial skills.
Tools & Exercises
- Check out this LinkedIn article to learn about activities that help boost our emotional intelligence.
- If you want to assess your emotional intelligence, visit this website.
- Learn about tools to improve your emotional intelligence skills here.
- Check out this interesting Forbes article about AI and how it can help develop emotional intelligence.
Want to learn more about emotional intelligence? Check out these resources:
- PathWise book summary:
https://pathwise.io/books/emotional-intelligence-why-it-can-matter-more-than-iq/ - Five-minute Video of Daniel Goleman Introducing Emotional Intelligence: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7m9eNoB3NU
- Harvard Business Review: Emotional intelligence has twelve elements. Which do you need to work on?
https://hbr.org/2017/02/emotional-intelligence-has-12-elements-which-do-you-need-to-work-on - LinkedIn: Daniel Goleman On How To Manage Your Emotions At Work & Why EQ Is More Valuable Than IQ
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/daniel-goleman-how-manage-your-emotions-work-why-eq-more-jacob-morgan/ - Harvard Business Review: The Focused Leader
https://hbr.org/2013/12/the-focused-leader - MindTools: Emotional Intelligence in Leadership
https://www.mindtools.com/ax3ar6w/emotional-intelligence-in-leadership - Ottawa University: Why Emotional Intelligence Is Important in the Workplace
https://www.ottawa.edu/online-and-evening/blog/october-2020/the-importance-of-emotional-intelligence-in-the-wo - List of Assessment Tools on Daniel Goleman’s Page:
https://www.danielgoleman.info/ei-assessments/ - Building Blocks of Emotional Intelligence: 12 Leadership Competency Primers:
https://www.keystepmedia.com/shop/12-leadership-competency-primers/
