What is Emotional Intelligence?

When I was in school my Dad often told me the straight A student wasn’t necessarily going to be the most successful; it would likely be the kid with average grades. On the surface this might not be the best advice to give a high school aged student, but I think the real point behind his message was success is more dependent on your emotional intelligence than your IQ. Which leads us to ask the question, “what exactly is emotional intelligence and what makes it more important than IQ”? IQ is a measure of your intellectual, analytical, logical, and rational abilities. Emotional intelligence is your awareness and discipline around yourself, communication, understanding others and social skills. Book smarts versus your street smarts. For example, someone may understand a complex software program and the benefits it would provide a client, but that doesn’t mean he or she is able to communicate those benefits and sell it to the client. If success was defined by the sell of the goods, not the development, then it would be necessary to utilize emotional intelligence to succeed. Have you been passed over for a promotion and know your technical skills surpass those of colleagues that have been promoted? According to the book, The EQ Edge, studies show your intelligence can predict an average of 6% success, but your emotional intelligence has the biggest impact being directly responsible for 27- 45 percent of job success. That is a significant difference. The good news is that unlike IQ, emotional intelligence can be developed. Each of us is born with some aspect of emotional intelligence, and the rest is acquired through life experiences. If you seek-out self-growth and incorporate awareness there are ways you can improve upon your emotional intelligence. It may be time to shift your energy and explore your street smarts. Answer the following statements with true or false.

1. People seek you out for assistance or friendship.
2. When criticized you explore the truth before responding.
3. People would describe you as an “up” person.
4. You easily understand other people’s concerns.
5. Your colleagues would say you are a good listener.
6. People connect easily to you.
7. You are flexible and can adjust to a situation that is positive or negative.
8. You use your emotions to assist in problem solving.
9. You feel joy and satisfaction regardless of what is happening.
10. You notice and are sensitive to others wants and needs.

Regardless of what you answered, these questions are simply a snap shot into what impacts your emotional intelligence. If you are seeking a higher level of success it is always beneficial to learn more about your emotional intelligence. At Brain Basics we offer the EQ-I 2.0 . This research-based assessment is thorough and tailored around your responses to crucial elements of emotional intelligence. A debrief with a coach will provide an overview of your results and allow you to explore areas you would like to improve upon. The report itself will provide suggestions with practical examples you can take action on.

Contact us today to improve and enhance your performance with the EQ-I 2.0 assessment and leadership coaching.