What is EQ?
- It is the ability to perceive, control, evaluate and express emotions. It helps us understand who we are and how well we handle ourselves and our relationships.
- It's a skill that can be learned, no matter what stage you are in your life.
- It's the ability to understand, use and manage your own emotions in positive ways to relieve stress, communicate effectively, empathize with others and overcome challenges.
- People with high EQ are aware of their emotions. They're not afraid of them. They know how important emotions are and are not hiding them. However, they know how to read them and how to manage them.
How is it different to IQ?
- IQ is a number. It stands for being "book smart".
- IQ tests measure your ability to solve problems, use logic, grasp or communicate complex ideas.
- You can be the smartest person but that doesn't mean that you're automatically a "good" person. Having a high IQ is no guarantee for success in life. You might struggle with your relationships and controlling your emotions.
Why is EQ so important?
The world is a changeable, complex, uncertain, and ambiguous place. Cultivating emotional intelligence is one way of helping us in this complex world, helping us as we study at Dev Academy, and helping us work in the wider world.
It's a very important skill to have especially in leadership roles. In my opinion it's very hard to find good leaders. I've had some very bad experiences in my past with leaders who lacked EQ. A lack of EQ might show as bullying, sexism, racism, etc. Most of the time those leaders are very insecure and highly unaware of other people's feelings. They don't know how to control their emotions and how to communicate effectively.
It's so very important in today's world to teach and learn about EQ as it leads to:
- Stellar Performance
- Outstanding Leadership
- Happiness
6 Steps to improve your IQ
Ramona Hacker gave an excellent TED talk about this. She talks about 6 steps that help us improve our EQ. They are:
- Acknowledge our Emotions and see them as something valuable
- Differentiate and analyze emotions
- Accept and appreciate emotions
- Reflect on your emotions and their origin
- Handle your emotions
- Handle the emotions of others
I highly recommend watching her talk. I found it very insightful.