Why EQ Matters in the Workplace
Why is emotional intelligence such a valued
workplace skill? In a survey of hiring managers, almost 75% of respondents
suggested that they valued an employee's EQ more than their IQ.
Emotional intelligence is widely recognized as a
valuable skill that helps improve communication, management, problem-solving,
and relationships within the workplace. It is also a skill that researchers
believe can be improved with training and practice.
People With
High EQ
- Make
better decisions and solve problems
- Keep
cool under pressure
- Resolve
conflicts
- Have
greater empathy
- Listen,
reflect, and respond to constructive criticism
People With Low
EQ
- Play
the role of the victim or avoid taking responsibility for errors
- Have
passive or aggressive communication styles
- Refuse
to work as a team
- Are
overly critical of others or dismiss others' opinions
HOW CAN MANAGER improve EQ?
It takes consistent effort and hard work to be more
focused on your and others’ emotional well-being. Here are a few good places to
start:
Practice understanding your own emotions.
Before you can understand and empathize with
another person, you have to understand yourself. Keep a journal and regularly
jot down how you’re feeling and why. Make small, measurable goals to increase
your self-management, such as minimizing frustrated outbursts.
Connect with employees on a personal level.
When you demonstrate a willingness to help your employees and to
recognize their efforts, you are leading with emotional intelligence, showing that
you care about them as individuals. This act of caring builds trust between
leaders and their employees.
Empathy has long been a soft skill that’s overlooked as a performance
indicator. Our research, however, has shown that today’s successful leaders are
showing kindness in the workplace and are more “person-focused,”
making them better able to work well with people from varying teams,
departments, countries, cultures, and backgrounds.
Unlock motivations.
As important as compensation and benefits are, we know they are not the
only things that matter when it comes to keeping employees productive and
engaged. These benefits are a part of a larger motivation equation.
Most of the time, understanding what motivates your employees is as easy
as asking them — and really listening to their responses. Once you understand
your employees’ motives, you can boost employee engagement and motivation,
increase job satisfaction, and improve retention
Ask more questions and really listen.
Asking questions is one of the best ways to learn
about the people around you. But only if you listen. Try to ask employees
questions such as, “How are you really doing?” or, “What can I do to make your
job easier?” Listen to their
When you have one-on-ones, make sure employees are
talking 80% of the time and you’re only talking 20% of the time. Employees need
to feel comfortable opening up to you.
Listen closely and withhold judgement.
It all starts with having strong active listening skills, and
striving to try to see the world as others see it. Really listen to, and
consider, their perspective, keeping your attitude as open as possible to
create a safe space for sharing and a sense of psychological safety at
work.
Work to understand the other person’s feelings and reflect them back to
the person. As you listen, pay close attention to the values and emotions
behind the facts themselves. Communicate your understanding of that person’s
feelings to assure people that their feelings and values are really understood.
.
Seek to understand more
about others and yourself.
Leading with emotional intelligence requires managers to harness the
power of their employees’ diverse experiences and consider people’s different
lived experiences to help their teams achieve their full potential.
Your ability to understand where your employees are coming from — including
their social identity and how their experiences may have informed their
perspectives — demonstrates a willingness to see the world as others see it,
without standing in judgment.
Even if you have high
emotional intelligence and leadership effectiveness, it’s not easy to get to
know every employee below the surface. It’s challenging to see the world as
others see it and to accept a variety of perspectives in a nonjudgmental way.
Building those skills
requires understanding how aspects of identity can affect the way you lead,
and a willingness to learn and recognize your own emotional triggers and
weaknesses. Leader effectiveness is constrained or amplified based on how well
leaders understand themselves, their awareness of how others view them, and how
they navigate the resulting interactions.So, intentionally increasing your
self-awareness is sure to help you improve your emotional intelligence and
leadership effectiveness.
Help
employees achieve their goals. Even if you struggle to understand the
feelings employees have, you can still help them do what matters to them. If
your employees are passionate or interested in any sort of work-related goal or
improvement, do what you can to help them accomplish it.
Ask for
and welcome feedback. As a leader, you need to understand how you’re
perceived by others. Three-hundred-sixty-degree feedback is a great way to see
what you’re good at and where you can improve.
A FINAL WORD
Emotional
intelligence is central to the success of any organization, team and individual
leader – and can be an especially beneficial characteristic during challenging
times. Managers and leaders need to learn how to really listen to, empathize
with, and support their employees. As we strive to improve our emotional intelligence,
we will be better leaders.
One other reason that
leading with emotional intelligence is so important: when an entire
organization is full of people leading with emotional intelligence front and
center, it can create a stronger culture.
Conversations, even hard
ones, are more honest, productive, and respectful. Everyone feels a strong
sense of belonging and ownership. Empathy and inclusion are particularly
imperative for organizational diversity initiatives to be successful.
So, are you and your
organization investing in developing the critical “soft skill” of leading with
emotional intelligence?
With best wishes
Dr Wilfred Monteiro
FOUNDER META+COACH MODEL
