3 Ways To Improve Your Emotional Intelligence

Emotional Intelligence describes the ability, capacity, skill or self-perceived ability, to identify, assess and manage the emotions of one's self, of others and groups.[1] Emotional Intelligence skills have found its importance in the present state of globalized economies, hierarchical organizations and demanding relationships. This article describes 3 methods that you can adopt to improve your emotional intelligence, namely:

1. Stress busting
2. Becoming aware of your own emotions
3. Lending an effective ear

   1. Stress busting:

   The most important factor that differentiates a person with high Emotional Intelligence is the time taken by him/her to calm down in a stressful situation. The degree of personal resilience differs in individuals. In other words, emotional intelligence is what will help you to stay balanced, focused and in control of whatever situation you are faced with.

   For adequate stress busting, it is important that you realize:

   a)     When you are stressed – What is it that stresses you out? The answer to this question will help you to achieving the first step in busting stress

   b)     How you react to stress – the best way to reduce stress is to understand how you react to a stressful situation

   c)     Which technique works best for you – Being more self aware will enable you to understand which technique gives you the desired positive results.

   2. Becoming aware of your own emotions:

   Emotional awareness is the key to understanding oneself and others. Many times, people fail to acknowledge their own emotions. They either suppress them, or vent them out in a manner that is negative and useless (drinking, drugs, etc). It is important to realize that although feelings can be suppressed, they can never be eliminated. Constant suppressing of emotions is dangerous, and will lead to what is known as emotional outbursts.

   Make it a practice to start and end your day with a personal moment-to-moment awareness of your emotions and how they influence your actions and thoughts. This will help you to reconnect to your core emotions, understand and accept them, and become comfortable while dealing with them. When done regularly, it will help you get into the mode of automatically being tuned to your emotions when you are faced with overwhelming situations.

   3. Lending an effective ear:

   One of the most important indicators of a person with high EQ (Emotional Quotient) is their ability to lend a ear – to listen when it is required. This includes being empathetic, being silent when the other person talks, and consciously indicating to the other person that they are being respected. Showing compassion and refraining from interruptions add to active listening. Your emotional intelligence improves as a result, since you learn more than what the other person verbally says. By lending a silent ear, you sense the trapped or suppressed emotions of the other person.

   Being emotionally intelligent may not seem to affect our daily lives as much, but the fact is that it does. It forms the basis of your interactions with other people, helps you to take control of the situation and makes success more predictable in what you undertake. By working to improve our emotional intelligence in a constant and conscious manner, we can strengthen relationships and lead better lives.

   Source:

   1. [1] Bradberry, Travis and Greaves, Jean. (2009). "Emotional Intelligence 2.0". San Francisco: Publishers Group West. (ISBN 9780974320625)

   2. http://www.helpguide.org/mental/eq5_raising_emotional_intelligence.htm