Recent studies have shown that being emotionally intelligent is one of the most important things you can develop as a person. This is also referred to as emotional literacy or, more commonly, EQ (emotional intelligence).

Many experts believe that we’re born with some degree of emotional intelligence (EI), but it’s what we're exposed to and how we process those experiences that make a difference.

Some people are just naturally more socially aware than others and this does contribute to their EI. But beyond mere understanding of other people, there are specific skills like emotion regulation, empathy, and altruism that can be improved upon as well.

There are many strategies and techniques for developing your emotional intelligence, so while sometimes it feels like a constant work in progress, you can feel good about yourself if you keep seeking out ways to improve.

Emotional intelligence has been linked to a variety of positive outcomes including:

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* Lower stress levels and anxiety
* More satisfying interpersonal relationships
* Higher job satisfaction and performance
* Improved academic achievement and success
* Healthier mental health

This article will discuss why emotional intelligence is such an important skill, what areas of our lives are influenced by emotional intelligence, and some easy ways to increase yours.

Why is emotional intelligence important?

Recent studies have shown that people who are more emotionally intelligent tend to enjoy higher levels of happiness and success in their lives.

Emotional intelligence (or EI for short) was first defined by Daniel Goleman as “the set of skills that enable you to recognize your own emotions, those of others, and how emotion affects other people’s behavior”.

However, it should be noted that earlier definitions refer to empathy as an essential part of emotional intelligence.

But while being able to identify our own feelings and interpret what someone else is feeling is a fundamental piece of understanding emotions, recognizing why they are happening and learning how to manage them is what makes emotional intelligence truly powerful.

There are several theories about why having high emotional intelligence is so valuable but one of the most popular ones is referred to as the self-regulation theory.

This theory suggests that people with higher emotional intelligence are better at controlling their reactions to things and therefore feel less stressed and overwhelmed.

Ways to improve your emotional intelligence

Even if you don’t feel like you have much of an understanding of what emotions are, or how to control them, there are things that you can do to develop your emotional skills.

There are different types of emotional intelligence (EI) that people seem to have varying levels of. Some people are more aware of their feelings than others, and this is considered to be strong empathy.

Other individuals may show less emotion in certain situations but still know how to relate to other people, which is called social awareness.

Some are just not as affected by events happening around them because they are too focused on themselves, which is referred to as self-awareness.

We all have different levels of each type of EI, and some people have very limited ones.

Teach yourself

There is no ‘developing’ emotional intelligence unless you are aware of your emotions. You have to know what makes you feel happy, sad or angry so that you can work on changing how you respond to these feelings.

By this we mean looking at them in depth and understanding why you feel a certain way. For example, when someone does something annoying it might make you mad but also because they may not respect you as an individual.

If you recognize both of those reasons, then chances are you will keep things between you and them separate!

You must be able to identify your own emotions if you want to improve yours. This means being honest with yourself about how you feel and knowing what triggers your emotions.

Triggers could be anything from something small like a text message or comment, to something much larger such as a conversation or argument.

It’s important to remember that people do not all think or behave the same.

Practice mindfulness

Development of emotional intelligence (EI) is a process that involves learning how to manage your emotions, recognize them, and what they mean for you.

Many experts agree that developing EI is an ongoing effort that requires practice. This means you have to be willing to put in time and effort to achieve this goal.

You can develop your EI by practicing mindfulness. Mindfulness is defined as paying close attention to the present moment experience with non-judgmental awareness.

By practicing mindfulness, you’ll learn how to identify and understand your feelings more clearly and effectively. You’ll also know when it’s appropriate to use your emotions for motivation and how to do so.

Mindful practices include things like meditation, self-reflection, and appreciating life experiences. All of these help you develop your emotional literacy and understanding of yourself and others.

Learn to be assertive

Being able to manage your emotions is a key part of emotional intelligence. It’s also one of the most important skills you can develop because it shapes so many other things like how well you interact with others, how successful you are in relationships, and even how happy or stable your life is.

Tracy was very good at her job, but she felt that her manager didn’t respect her enough. She made a lot of effort to build strong rapport with him, but it just wasn’t happening.

One day, he called her into his office for what seemed like an extended tirade about something that she had done months earlier. During the meeting, he used some pretty tough language, and when he got upset, so did she.

She never received a clear explanation as to why he thought she failed to do her job properly, and this made her feel bad about herself. Even though she was totally justified in what she said, she still felt hurt and confused.

Her emotional regulation broke down during the confrontation, and it took a while before she could talk calmly again. Once she had calmed down, she realized that she needed to make way for more productive conversations in the future.

So she asked him if there were any upcoming projects that she should know about, and he replied that there weren’t. This gave her an opportunity to choose not to work on those projects, which left him feeling dismissed and angry.

Learn to be consistent

Consistency is one of the biggest keys to success in life. If you want to know more about someone, look into their past behaviors!

We are all shaped by our experiences, both good and bad. How we respond to these experiences makes who we are as people.

People with high emotional intelligence are aware of this and use it to improve themselves. They recognize that how they handle situations changes depending on what situation they are facing, and this can make them succeed vastly.

With its importance understood, now it’s time to develop yours.

You will not find true success if you do not understand yourself. You must learn your strengths and weaknesses, what motivates you, and determine ways to motivate yourself.

Develop your self-confidence

Recent studies have shown that emotional intelligence (or EQ as it is often referred to) can have profound effects on your career and personal life.

This doesn’t mean having a good laugh every now and then or being able to read people well, but knowing how to manage your own emotions and those of others.

It means understanding what makes you feel bad about yourself and trying to avoid these experiences by altering the situation, changing things or finding ways to distract yourself.

You would also want to learn how to be happy for other people instead of feeling jealous or left out.

All of this comes down to developing your emotional intelligence.

There are many different theories about why EQ is so important, but no one really knows for sure just like there is not a test that proves someone has high EQ or low EQ.

What we do know is that people who are more intelligent are happier and live longer than individuals with less IQ.

So if you are looking to improve your career or personal life, investing in some EQ training could help.

Learn to be realistic

A large part of emotional intelligence is learning how to be honest with yourself about your in-game experiences. It’s easy to get distracted by all of the flashy, exciting things that you do during games, but if you are looking for more solid progress then you have to acknowledge that such behaviors will not lead to real change.

If you want to see results then you have to make changes beyond just playing video games. You need to spend time outside of gaming investing in other areas of your life so that the game can thrive.

It’s impossible to put in the effort into other parts of your life while you are wasting most of your time obsessing over something that you enjoy.

Start thinking about ways to improve other aspects of your life now before the problem even arises. This could mean making an effort to visit friends or family who have been absent, taking up a new hobby, giving up a habit that you've had for a long time, etc.

There's no guarantee that this will work, but it's worth a try.