Emotional Intelligence Practices to Get Results at the Workplace
All managers find it difficult to elevate employee performance and commitment to the organization.
Recently, there has been a global shift towards understanding emotions as the primary method of improving workplace performance. The concept of emotional intelligence especially gained popularity since Daniel Goleman published his groundbreaking book “Emotional Intelligence”, which highlighted the advantage of emotional intelligence (EQ) over the traditional conception of intelligence (IQ).
Goleman especially emphasized developing emotional intelligence in the workplace as a catalyst for organizational progress and development.
What is Emotional Intelligence?
The concept of emotional intelligence has been defined differently by different researchers.
The most commonly cited definitions are those of Mayer and Salovey, who define it as “the ability to recognize, understand, express, manage and use emotions called emotional intelligence” (Mayer & Salovey, 1997).
Goleman, who popularized the idea, explains it as “the ability to recognize our feelings and the feelings of others, the ability to motivate ourselves, and the ability to manage emotions well in ourselves and relationships with others.” Goleman (2005)
In short, emotional intelligence is the ability to be aware of, identify, manage and express one’s and other’s emotions.
5 Components of Emotional Intelligence
Emotional intelligence is not as simple as it seems. In fact, it is an amalgam of several sub-concepts. These include:
- Self-recognition– i.e., the ability to recognize your own emotions, understand yourself, your values, goals, strengths, and weaknesses
- Self-control– this demands being able to manage and regulate your emotions.
- Motivation– the drive to achieve goals and objectives, constantly seeking self-improvement and grit in the face of obstacles and setbacks
- Empathy– being able to understand others’ emotions and feelings, recognizing the other’s perspective by seeing through their lens.
- Social skills– ability to navigate social relationships, active listening, ability to influence another person, conflict resolution, cooperation, and teamwork
Why Are Emotional Intelligence Practices Important to Get Results at Workplace
Several researchers have pointed out how crucial emotional intelligence practices are to get results at the workplace and to deal with modern workplace challenges. The benefits of EI in the workplace include but are not limited to the following:
- Boost Employee Performance
Research has found that emotionally intelligent managers are more effective than their non-emotionally intelligent counterparts.
This is because such managers can take constructive criticism from their employees, develop trust with them and inspire them to achieve the organization’s goals. Similarly, emotionally intelligent employees have better work performance as they are able to come up with solutions more easily. They can gather social support effortlessly and thus are less likely to fail and remain stuck.
- Adds to Job Satisfaction
Employees with high emotional intelligence have greater job satisfaction. This is because such employees experience more positive emotions and are better equipped to understand and manage negative emotions such as stress and burnout.
- Manage Workplace Stress
Employee stress is inevitable with the increasing change and uncertainty in today’s times.
Research during the COVID-19 pandemic showed that despite the stressful working conditions during the pandemic, employees having high emotional intelligence exceeded in work performance and productivity compared to other, less emotionally intelligent employees. They could better identify the causes of their stress and then effectively manage them.
Recognizing and expressing emotions also improved group connectivity and teamwork, reducing stress and leading to collective action toward achieving organizational goals.
Related: What is Imposter Syndrome and How to Overcome it
- Promotes Creativity
Emotionally intelligent leaders stimulate creativity.
Managers who encourage employees to express themselves get more creative solutions from their workforce. Such employees understand their manager can handle unintended consequences arising from innovative solutions and therefore be more inclined towards out-of-the-box thinking.
This also increases employee motivation and engagement as they feel more involved in organizational decisions.
- Better Customer Relations
Emotional intelligence is a win-win for the organization and the employees.
Not only does it improve employee mental health, but it also boosts organizations’ customer service. Emotionally intelligent employees can better pick up clients’ emotional states and use that knowledge to their benefit. By identifying the customer’s concerns and empathizing with them, employees can communicate effectively and influence their decision in favor of the organization.
How Managers Can Develop Emotional Intelligence In Employees
Leaders and managers can make use of the following emotional intelligence practices to get results at the workplace:
- Be Open and Make Employees Feel Valued.
Emotionally intelligent managers are open to employee feedback. Managers must proactively create a safe working space where employee opinions are heard and valued. Ask the employees to express their feelings and emotions and give them a chance to speak. Be a good listener.
- Take a Psychologist or Coach On-Board
Managers can hire professionals who can help build employee emotional intelligence. Coaches and psychologists are experienced and certified to use the techniques and tools to develop emotional intelligence in people.
- Arrange an Emotional Intelligence Workshop
Suppose your company has no budget to hire full-time coaches and psychologists.
In that case, you may boost your employee performance with emotional intelligence-building activities by arranging emotional intelligence training sessions for your employees. Such training sessions must not be purely theoretical. Still, they should include exercises and activities that help them become aware of and manage their and others’ emotions.
- Organize Assertiveness Training
Through assertiveness training, managers can help employees balance their negative feelings and gain emotional intelligence. It will empower people to express their needs without feeling shame, or on the other extreme, being too aggressive. Employees who suppress their negative emotions display passive aggressiveness, which not only harms the employee but also damages the workplace environment.
A healthy workplace should allow employees to express their thoughts and feelings assertively.
- Plan Stress Management Training Activities
Stress management training is another tool to build emotional intelligence in employees. Through this training, employees can learn to identify stress when experiencing its symptoms or when they see someone else in their team going through it. Such training also offers techniques such as deep breathing exercises that help people regain control of themselves under pressure.
- Schedule Regular Meditation Sessions
Moreover, managers can organize meditation interventions for their employees. Meditation effectively increases concentration, self-awareness (including emotional awareness), self-control, and stress management.