Our ever-evolving, complex global workplace demands more than technical skills to succeed. The distinguishing factor between good and exceptional performers, good leaders, and great leaders often comes down to a crucial skill set: Emotional Intelligence (often referred to as “soft skills”). According to the Word Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs 2023 report, qualities related to emotional intelligence are highly valued by employers and will become even more critical over the next decade.
While IQ measures our ability to process information and solve logical problems, emotional intelligence —or EI—determines how well we understand and manage our emotions, behavior, and relationships with others. The fact is that we all find ourselves experiencing positive and negative emotions throughout our day. Whether we realize it or not, our emotions influence our decisions, behavior, and performance in ways we might not be aware of. Positive emotions tend to have a “broaden and build” effect, leading to better engagement and performance. Negative emotions tend to have a limiting effect, causing us to be more closed-minded and less engaged, leading to poor performance. As discussed in my paper, “Leading Through Change a Blueprint for Cultivating. Resilience” emotional intelligence is foundational for building relationships and great cultures, cultivating resilience and adaptability and effectively managing the challenges and uncertainties now and in the future.
What exactly is Emotional Intelligence?
Think of emotional intelligence as your internal navigation system for professional success. Just as a skilled athlete needs both physical strength and knowledge of the game to win, you need technical expertise and emotional intelligence (EI) to excel in today’s workplace. This powerful combination of skills allows you to read situations accurately, respond effectively, improve decision-making, and create meaningful impact in everything you do.
When Daniel Goleman introduced emotional intelligence in his revolutionary 1995 book “EI: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ,” he unveiled a framework that would transform our understanding of professional success. Let’s delve into the five pillars of EI that will serve as your foundation for strengthening your EI skills and making a positive impact. I’ve shared some tangible and helpful examples that will inspire you to harness the transformative power of EI in your professional journey.
- Self-awareness is your ability to recognize and understand your emotions as they happen. Think of it as your emotional GPS, constantly updating you about your internal state. When a client recently shared his frustration with a team member, reflection and self-awareness helped him recognize how his actions impacted his team members, and he made adjustments.
- Self-regulation allows you to manage your emotional responses effectively. One of my clients recently shared how she had a tendency to react immediately to challenging emails, often escalating situations. As she worked to improve her self-regulation, she learned to pause, process her emotions, and respond thoughtfully instead of impulsively.
- Motivation goes beyond rewards like salary or status. It’s your internal drive and desire to improve and achieve. I’ve worked with numerous professionals who maintained enthusiasm and commitment even during the most challenging projects because they were connected to their deeper purpose.
- Empathy is your ability to understand and share the feelings of others. It’s like having an emotional radar that picks up on what others are experiencing. Recently, during a large-scale change initiative, an executive leveraged her empathy to recognize that her team’s resistance to change wasn’t stubbornness but fear of job security, allowing her to address the real issue effectively.
- Social skills and communication skills tie everything together. They are the link between understanding emotions and creating positive and meaningful relationships, enabling you to build and maintain relationships, positively influence others, and navigate social situations successfully. These skills are essential to transform understanding into action.
Why EI Matters
The global workplace is characterized by ambiguity and uncertainty, and the real differentiator I observe in my most successful clients who exhibit both IQ and EI is that they are well-rounded and well-positioned for success. Research consistently shows that in addition to technical skills, EI correlates more strongly with career advancement than technical expertise alone. Whether you’re leading teams, collaborating with colleagues, or navigating workplace challenges, your level of EI contributes to well-being, performance, longevity, resilience, improved decision- making, and relationships.
As automation and artificial intelligence transform the workplace, EI becomes even more crucial. While machines excel at processing data and performing routine tasks, uniquely human “soft” skills like emotional reasoning, empathy, emotional understanding, and relationship building become increasingly valuable.
Developing your EI isn’t just about improving your job performance—it’s about future-proofing your career. The ability to understand and connect with others, navigate complex social situations, and manage emotions effectively will remain in high demand regardless of how technology evolves.
Here are some examples:
- In technical roles, EI can set top performers apart. The best researchers, data scientists, and business executives aren’t just technically proficient—they excel at collaboration, communicating complex ideas, and understanding user needs. For instance, an accomplished data scientist with high EI will effectively communicate with non-technical team members and adapt their communication style to explain complex data in a way everyone can understand. Similarly, a business executive with high EI can navigate complex negotiations and understand the needs and concerns of all parties involved, leading to more successful outcomes.
- In client-facing roles, EI is your secret weapon. It helps you read situations accurately, “read the room” effectively, handle difficult conversations gracefully, and build lasting, trusted relationships. It’s the difference between closing a deal and creating a long-term partnership, instilling a sense of confidence and competence in your client interactions.
- In leadership roles, effectiveness is highly dependent on EI. Leaders with high EI not only create more positive work environments but also inspire greater trust and achieve better results through their teams than those with low EI. This underscores the empowering and transformative role of EI for leaders and teams.
- For teams, emotionally intelligence fosters a positive work environment where members can effectively collaborate, communicate openly, resolve conflicts constructively, and achieve better overall performance by understanding and managing their own emotions and the emotions of others within the team, leading to increased trust, motivation, and innovation.
How Do You Know If You Are Emotional Intelligent?
There are several indicators of EI. Consider these questions:
- Do you notice your emotional reactions as they happen? Individuals with high EI can identify their emotions in real-time and understand what triggers them.
- Can you calm yourself in stressful situations? Those with strong EI can regulate their responses even under pressure.
- Do you find yourself genuinely curious about others’ perspectives? EI involves a natural interest in understanding different viewpoints.
- How well do you handle criticism? People with high EI can receive feedback without becoming defensive, seeing it as an opportunity for growth.
- Do others seek your advice during conflicts? Strong EI often makes people natural mediators and trusted advisors.
Practical Strategies for Strengthening Your Emotional Intelligence
These strategies are not just theoretical concepts but actionable steps you can implement in your daily professional life. They will empower you to strengthen your EI and enhance your workplace effectiveness and leadership skills.
Strengthening EI begins with assessing your current EI level. Notice how you handle stress, conflict, and relationships at work. Are there patterns in your emotional responses that help or hinder your effectiveness? The good news is that you can develop your EI with reflection, conscious effort, and consistent practice. Here are practical strategies to enhance your EI and empower you to take control of your professional growth.
Select one aspect of EI to focus on initially. Set specific goals for improvement and practice consistently in your daily interactions. It starts with initial discovery and self-reflection, consistent practice, and feedback. Here’s a development framework I have implemented with my clients:
- Start with Self-Awareness: Start with Self-Awareness, a foundational pillar of EI that will enlighten you about your emotions and their impact on your personal and professional relationships. Set aside time daily to reflect on your emotional responses to situations. What triggered them? How did you handle them? What could you have done differently? This practice will help you recognize patterns in your emotional responses and their impact on work relationships and project outcomes. Consider maintaining an emotion journal for two weeks.
- Practice Emotional Regulation: When encountering a challenging situation, “pause and plan.” Take a moment to pause and process your emotional reaction before responding. This brief pause can prevent impulsive reactions and plan a more thoughtful response. When you feel a strong emotion rising, pause for 10 seconds before reacting. During this pause, ask yourself: “What is the most constructive way to handle this situation?” One of my clients applied this technique and transformed his approach from being reactive to being recognized as a thoughtful leader.
- Develop Empathy: Empathy is your ability to understand someone’s perspective. Consider empathy your relationship superpower. Try this: When someone expresses a viewpoint different from yours, challenge yourself to really listen and truly understand their position before responding. Ask questions like “What experiences led you to this conclusion?” rather than immediately defending your view. Mastering this skill will help transform your relationships.
- Enhance Social Skills: Identify a professional or personal relationship you want to improve. Set a goal to have three meaningful conversations with that person over the next month, focusing on understanding their priorities and challenges. My clients have shared that they are amazed at how this simple practice has transformed their professional relationships.
A helpful technique for improving EI is observing how successful leaders handle difficult situations and relationships. What can you learn from their approach? How do they maintain composure under pressure?
Measuring Your Progress
Research shows that participants in EI development programs can significantly improve their EI skills. My recommendations for tracking your progress include:
- Keep a journal documenting situations where you effectively used EI.
- Regularly seek honest feedback from trusted colleagues and mentors about changes they notice in your interactions and how you come across different situations. Their perspectives can highlight blind spots in your self-awareness and areas for improvement.
- Setting specific, measurable goals to improve your EI.
- Monitoring the quality and outcomes of your professional relationships
Interested in Learning More about Enhancing Your Emotional Intelligence?
Mastering EI is a transformative journey that compounds with every interaction. As you develop this critical “soft” skill, you’ll find you are better able to build deeper connections, lead more effectively, create lasting positive impact across your professional life, maintain resilience and position yourself to advance your career. Research consistently shows that emotionally intelligent leaders drive better outcomes, build stronger, higher performing teams, and achieve greater career success.
Coaching helps support the development of EI for individuals, teams and organizations by providing a safe space for individuals to become more self-aware of their emotions, learn to manage them effectively, develop empathy, and practice regulating their reactions, all through personalized guidance and reflection exercises, ultimately leading to better personal and professional relationships.
If you want to learn more about strengthening your EI and taking your career to the next level, book a complementary discovery conversation with me to explore how coaching can help support you as you achieve extraordinary outcomes and transform your career.
About the Author
Carolyn Hillegass is the CEO and Founder of The Outcomes Coach, an ICF-certified executive coach, and a Certified Genos Emotional Intelligence Practitioner. She has over 30 years of business experience and c-suite leadership in healthcare, technology, and emerging business sectors. She specializes in coaching tailored to the unique needs of individuals, teams, and organizations within the healthcare sector, including health services, life sciences, pharma, biotech, medtech, and digital health.
