How to be emotionally intelligent

When we think of emotional intelligence the first thing that might come to mind is emotions. People have assertions that those who show too much emotion or wear their emotions on their sleeves make too many errors in judgment and are sometimes not logical. But being emotional is somehow different than that. In today’s post, we will be talking about how to be emotionally intelligent and why you should be.

Emotional intelligence simply means managing your emotions or keeping them in check and the emotions of others. This allows an individual better to understand their own self as well as others. In social situations, it is ideal to know how people feel and respond to that feeling.

Emotional intelligence can otherwise be known as emotion quotient. It is simply quite similar to intelligence quotient (IQ),  in the sense that the higher the number the better that person is. If a person has a higher emotional intelligence they are very aware of themselves and would handle people better. Experts advise that there should be a balance between IQ and EQ because a high IQ and a low EQ lead to someone who is intelligent but lacks social awareness and a low IQ and high EQ would lead to a very emotional person.

An emotionally intelligent person also has the ability to describe what people are feeling. This comes from putting themselves in the situation of others, thereby understanding how that person feels. This is a very good trait and it is more challenging than it sounds. It takes practice and understanding to do this. Some have it naturally and some arguably, through maturity, can develop it.

A person who is emotionally intelligent is aware of their personal strengths and weaknesses. Because they are able to look into themselves. They also know where their strengths and weaknesses lie. This is essential in forging long-term relationships. Since the individual knows what they lack they can find a friend or partner that compliments them.

Emotional intelligence is a trait leaders should have. For someone who aspires to be a leader or who is, it is important to understand themselves and others as much as possible.  This would enable them to not only know themselves but to know what others need and how they can fulfill these needs. There still needs to be a need assessment. However, knowing what others need through emotional intelligence is still very important.

A person with high emotional intelligence is more likely to stay calm under pressure than someone who doesn't. This is because they understand themselves better and know how they can use their skills to solve the problem at hand. Therefore they can remain calm.

Five components of emotional intelligence 

Self-awareness

This involves understanding one's emotions. It also helps to understand who we are including our personalities, actions, beliefs, values, and thoughts. It also allows us to be able to focus on positive things when in a negative situation.

Self-regulation

This involves managing one's emotions as a result of self-awareness or understanding one's own emotions.

Motivation

This is the process of enabling one's self to achieve certain goals. It is very important in achieving certain aims and objectives. It is one of the main facets of behavior and it enables social interaction, and fuels competition.

Empathy

Empathy refers to how refined a person is to the emotions of others. A person with high EI can identify which emotions a person possesses and accurately distinguish genuine emotions from false emotions.

Social skills

A person with high emotional intelligence might be better at interacting with people than a person with low emotional intelligence 

Some might argue that empathy is perhaps the most important aspect of emotional intelligence. Well, it's possible. Because understanding others is critical to emotional intelligence and putting yourself in the stimulation of others is really important and it is what every relationship should strive to be.

 How to become emotionally intelligent

• Try to improve your self-awareness
• Try to understand what others are going through
• Try to understand the emotions of others
• Be an active listener
• Be open-minded
• Be a good communicator
• Always be positive
• Always pay attention to feedback from other

Why should you be emotionally intelligent?

• It helps to build relationships
• Reduce stress
• Resolve conflict
• Improve personal and job satisfaction
• Improves communication skills
• Creates a positive and good environment
• Improves social skills
• Helps to manage your emotions and the emotions of others
• It helps to manage relationships
• It helps to improve conflict resolution skills

Conclusion 

In conclusion, an emotionally intelligent person is very important in the home or workplace since they understand themselves and others. However, this does not happen in isolation. Facets such as self-regulation or empathy come into play, especially empathy. Hence, in whatever we do let us Always empathize with others, in the right situations.