Over the past few years, emotional intelligence (or EI for short) has become one of the biggest buzzwords in the workplace. While it may sound like another way to say “emotions” or even “intrinsic motivation,” there is an important difference.

In contrast to intrinsic motivation, which looks at how motivated someone is by their internal desire to do something, emotional intelligence focuses on understanding and managing your own emotions as well as those of others.

The term was coined back in 1989 when Daniel Goleman published his book The New Harvard Business Review. Since then, many experts have contributed to the field, including John Dutton, who wrote an article about emotional literacy for Psychology Newsletter. He described it as knowing what emotions look like and why they occur so that you can manage them and use them productively.

Emotional competence also includes knowledge of yourself, your strengths and weaknesses, and the role different feelings play in motivating you. Some people are more emotionally intelligent than others, but anyone can learn to be more aware and control their emotions. It is a skill that everyone should possess if we want to achieve our goals and enjoy life.

There are several theories about what makes someone seem more emotionally intelligent, but no matter what theory applies to you, remember this truth: being able to identify your own emotions and understand why you feel the way you do helps you regulate your own behavior and motivate yourself.

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Relationship with effective leadership

As mentioned earlier, emotional intelligence (EI) is like IQ for workplace effectiveness. With regard to leadership, being able to read other people’s emotions and tone of voice is an important skill to have.

If you cannot tell if someone is angry or excited about something, it can be difficult to respond appropriately. You may not understand why they are upset, which could make them feel even more stressed out.

On the contrary, some individuals may keep things lighthearted and fun in a stressful situation because they do not perceive that others around them are relaxed. This could create additional stress for them, and them for you.

In either case, there is no way to know what their mood is unless you ask, so this is another area where having high EI comes in handy. If you notice that someone seems down, try to find out why by asking them directly, giving them time to reply without sounding accusatory.

Ways to improve emotional intelligence

Recent studies have shown that people who are high in emotional intelligence are more likely to succeed at work, and employers value this quality. On the other hand, research has also shown that being emotionally intelligent can make your job even harder by creating conflict and distractions.

It’s important to note here that although it is helpful to be able to recognize and manage your own emotions, too much empathy can actually hurt you professionally.

Too many feelings for one person or situation may distract you from completing your tasks, and you could get distracted by someone else's mood as well. Your colleagues may feel offended when you don't show sympathy, and they might accuse you of not caring about the project.

Similarly, if someone does not seem like he/she is enjoying his/her work, you may spend time trying to cheer them up, which could take away from productivity. This could backfire and cause them to feel bad about themselves, which can sometimes lead to poor performance and discontentment with their career choice.

Learn to be a good listener

A good listener is a very important skill for anyone to have in their workplace. You will likely spend a lot of time talking with people, whether it’s in the work place or outside of it.

Whether you are speaking with someone about their career or about personal matters, being a good listener means paying attention to what they say and how they say it. It also means acknowledging and responding to what you hear clearly and thoughtfully.

By showing an interest in other people, we show them that they can trust us. We build relationships through interactions, and people who know you well can often tell when you aren’t really listening.

It sounds simple, but it takes practice.

Understand your coworkers

A large part of workplace interactions are conversations with other people, so being aware of what types of things make them uncomfortable or unhappy will help you avoid some tough situations.

By knowing how someone is usually affected by certain topics, you can choose whether to bring up that topic or not, which helps reduce stress for both parties.

It also gives you more clues about who they might be in a relationship with, if anything at all.

Emotions tend to run higher when there’s been a significant change, like moving away from home, changing jobs, or breaking off an engagement, so try to identify any changes like these before talking about things that matter to you.

If something makes one person very emotional then chances are it’s important to them, and worth discussing.

The same goes for things that make another person happy or sad – talk about it!

Knowing how others feel can easily prevent hurt feelings and even solve problems. Plus, it raises empathy — understanding other people’s emotions. And don’t forget that a lot of times, a good laugh really does fix everything.

Make eye contact

Making direct, meaningful connections with people is a powerful way to enhance your career. When you make good interpersonal contacts, you build trust, gain respect, and learn about other individuals’ thoughts, feelings, and secrets.

When you have high emotional intelligence (EI), you are aware of how emotions influence others and what makes them feel comfortable or relaxed. You recognize their important non-verbal signals such as tone of voice, body language, and look in someone’s eyes.

Having high EI helps you read people effectively and understand why they behave the way they do. This can be very helpful in your job if you work in an industry that requires teamwork and communication.

If you want to increase your own EQ, focus on understanding your own emotions and how they affect you. Also, practice using effective listening skills so you know what to say to improve relationships at work.

Be consistent

Consistency is one of the most important things to be when developing your emotional intelligence. Just because something worked in the past does not mean it works now, so try to use the same strategies in this area to improve yourself.

One of the biggest reasons why people lose motivation and faith in themselves is due to changes they see in their own behavior. If you want to achieve success in this area then make sure that you do not have any major shifts or developments.

It will take some time to develop these skills, but don’t give up! You are worth investing in this area for yourself.

Keeping these points in mind can help you to keep track of your emotions and learn how to control them. May God bless you as you work on improving your emotional intelligence.

Be optimistic

Even if you’re not sure what will come next, be optimistically motivated for the future. Believe in yourself and your potential so that you can contribute more to the workplace and the community.

In this highly connected era of technology, there are never truly “lonely” times. You are always surrounded by other people or opportunities to learn from them.

By having high emotional intelligence, you’ll recognize and manage your emotions better. Plus, you’ll connect with others more effectively and motivate them to do their best work.

You’d like to think that employers look at a candidate’s academic record before offering them a position, but they don’t. What really matters is how well someone handles stressful situations and relationships.

A lot of things add up over time — like whether someone gets into arguments with colleagues, goes out drinking after work, etc.

Gain their trust

As mentioned earlier, leadership is characterized by trust. You cannot lead people if they do not have confidence in you. Therefore, one of your major roles as a leader is to gain their trust. This can be done through actions or behaviors, but it also means establishing rapport with them.

When someone does something that shows they are trustworthy, like sharing a personal story or complimenting you, you can use that information to determine whether or not they deserve your trust at this moment. For example, if someone says they are going to take good care of you, then chances are they will take good care of you later.

By having these relationships, people will feel comfortable coming to you for help or advice. They will believe you will keep things confidential from others, and you will earn their respect by being honest and reliable.

With all those qualities, you will know how to motivate employees and inspire them to give their best every day. Employees who work for you will always try hard because they want to prove themselves worthy of your trust.

You will also need to manage their emotions so they don’t overreact when something happens that seems out of place or unexpected.