Emotional intelligence (EQ) is the ability to understand and manage our emotions, and understand other’s and controlling our reactions.
Importance of Emotional IQ:
Like Intelligence Quotient (I.Q), Emotional Quotient (E.Q) is also important in maintaining social bonds and relationship with others. High EQ people are more matured, emotionally resilient, less reactive and carry more leadership quality. Low EQ people are hostile, reactive and perceived in a negative way by other people.
In arenas of leadership and social situations Emotional Quotient is an important factor. Because it helps a person take better hold of social situations, influence people, defuse hostile social situations and make the interactions more engaging. It is a great tools for social wins.
Here are some tips to increase Emotional Intelligence:
Be more open minded
An open mind opens possibility to positive events and feelings. Open minded people are keen to understand perspective different to theirs. They are also able to change their view, perception and habits compared to closed minded people. Open Minded people also tend to understand feelings and people different to theirs. They react in appropriate manner.
To be more open minded, a person needs to seek to understand other people’s perspective and feelings. An open-minded person can grow and change their conducts and habits over time. To become more open minded. Practice these steps:
- Growth Mindset: Grow your conducts and habits overtime
- Seek to understand other people’s opinion using both logic and feelings.
- Forming opinion using logic and empirical basis, not feelings or subjective experiences.
Practice emotional hygiene
Emotional hygiene is a process to take care of your emotional health. And reduce and release emotional stresses. Emotional hygiene behavioral practices may help a person to recover from emotional distressing events.
Some of emotional hygiene practices are journaling, meditation, cognitive behavioral therapy, exercises etc. Any person who wants to boost EQ needs to have more emotional stability. Emotional hygiene practices can increase emotional maturity and mental stability. Some emotional hygiene practices are:
- Journaling
- Mindfulness Practices
- Stress Reduction techniques
Don’t react
People tend to screw up things more when they react inappropriately due to higher emotional intensity. Such as anger, showing frustration, showing hostility. Low EQ people are reactive and aggressive. These reactions are ineffective form of communication practices. People do not like these traits because it doesn’t help resolve conflict or deliver effective communication.
So, the best way to increase Emotional Quotient is be not to react too much. Sometimes, in rare case, reactive emotions such as showing anger or talking loudly justifiable. But most people take it too far. It is better to be observe the event where lot of emotional intensity going on, understand all perspective and making a fair conclusion. This will open the possibility of conflict resolution. That’s where the EQ plays a huge role. Reactive emotions often doesn’t play a role in resolving conflict, instead it aggravate it.
Understand people’s perspective
People have different perspective and perception. Your views may be different from others. So, it is necessary to understand people’s perspective on an emotional level. It will help you understand other people and help you navigate your potential response. People who are higher in Emotional Quotient understand other people’s emotions and perspective effectively. And It makes them better communicator.
Carry more compassion
Compassionate people are more considerate toward others. People rate them more in attractiveness and friendliness. Compassionate people are better leader than non-compassionate people. Higher EQ people can regulate their emotions, which helps them show more empathy and compassion toward others.
Being compassionate mean treating people with empathy and sympathy. Treating people with kindness, and treating people with empathy is key tool in earning people’s trust and respect. When faced in emotionally troubling situations, people should be more compassionate instead of hostile and aggressive. Higher EQ people can show this skill in social situations.
Increase Social Skills
People who are socially organized and skillful are better in handling socially conflicting emotions. Social skills can help you communicate clearly and effectively with people. It also helps understand social situations. High Emotional Intelligence and social skills are co-related. Because a high EQ person understand other people’s feelings and treat people with respect and kindness. High EQ people are also better communicator and better problem resolver.
Increasing social kills involves communicating with people with clarity, listening to other people and understanding their perspective, giving people good vibes etc. When you interact with people make sure you are creating a good impression upon them by giving them good vibes. To enhance social skills:
- Meet more and more people
- Carry positive energy in social interactions
- Use eye contact, gesture, positive feedback, smile to appear more engaging. Engagement is makes you attractive in social Settings.
Be more positive
Positive minded people also think and act positively. Making them good communicator with other people. Positive minded people also give positive vibe to other people. So, it is a must have trait which everyone should acquire. A positive person is genuine, authentic, good willed and compassionate. These traits are found in High EQ people. People are attracted to positive vibes, feelings and positive people.
To become more positive, try to have more positive thoughts. When communicating with people use positive phrases and positive words. Even when confronting people, use positive languages to make you stand out among people and in front of your competitor. So that people can understand you and create a good impression upon you in their head.
