Emotional intelligence is the phrase used to describe the ability to identify, use, understand, and manage emotionsin positive ways to relieve stress, communicate effectively, empathize with others, overcome challenges, and defuse conflict. There are several competencies that are sometimes grouped into four major components:*.Self-awareness - You recognize your own emotions and how they affect your thoughts and behavior; know your strengths & weaknesses; have self-confidence.*.Self-management - You're able to control impulsive feelings and behaviors; manage your emotions in healthy ways; take initiative; follow through on commitments, and adapt to changing circumstances.*.Social awareness - You can understand the emotions, needs, and concerns of other people, pick up on emotional cues, feel comfortable socially, and recognize the power dynamics in a group or organization.*.Relationship management - You know how to develop and maintain good relationships, communicate clearly, inspire and influence others, work well in a team, and manage conflict.It's likely we could all identify people wehave known who seem to have a natural high EQ. These are people who resonate with us, create a positive vision, motivate us to work together to achieve great things. They communicate effectively; we like to be with them; they inspire trust. We could also identify some people who were justterrible at EQ - who constantly create dissonance and conflict, who inspire people to go to great lengths to avoid working with them.Are we predestined to live out our lives with the EQ we have today? The research says, No.According to Richard Boyatzis, pioneering researcher into leadership and emotional intelligence, the research says that emotional intelligence and leadership skills can be taught.Drawing on Intentional Change Theory (ICT), he describes the five steps to the type of personal change required in order to increase emotional intelligence. Intentional Change Theory holds that change, to be sustainable, must be intentional. Interestingly, these steps are not dissimilar to steps required for organizational change. The requirement is a desire for change; without that, no sustainable improvement is possible.People with no interest in developing EQwill not do so, but if they are motivated to change, the following steps will help them.1.Identify the ideal selfIn a way, this is analogous to imagining the future state of an organization - what it would look like without defects, rework, misalignment of work and requirements, etc. - but the ideal self is much more personal. One person's ideal self, building on his or her core identity and aspirations, will be different from another's ideal self. Personal change starts with envisioning the ideal self - the way one would like to be, to work, and to be perceived, but this is much more personal. This has three elements:*.Awareness of one's strengths*.An image of the desired future, and*.A sense of hope that the desired future is attainableInsight into the ideal self is not always straightforward. One might simply extrapolate a trend of the present instead of envisioning a truly desired future self. Talking about aspirations with trusted friends or mentors can help. But identifying a clear picture of the future self one wishes to be is a foundational step in Intentional ChangeTheory.2.Identify the real selfWhere is one, relative to one's goals today. This step is not as easy as it sounds. In "Primal Leadership" Goleman, Boyatzis, and McKee report,"We found that an alarming number of leaders do not really know if they have resonance with their organizations. Rather they suffer from CEO disease; it's one unpleasant symptom is the sufferer's near-total ignorance about how his mood and actions appear to the organization. It's not that leaders don't care how they are perceived; most do. But they incorrectly assume that they can decipher this information themselves. Worse, they think that if they are having a negative effect, someone will tell them. They're wrong." The greatest challenge is to see oneself as others do. Using multiple sources of feedback can be very useful. Many organizations use 360 reviews for all individuals in management positions. However, the self-assessments are customarily inflated because it is the start of negotiation position. [Boyatzis uses 360 reviews to measure the correlation between EQ and operating results, but he says they throw away the self-assessments as "they are largely delusional."] Identification of the actualself requires honest and objective feedback. Behavioral feedback (such as video) and psychological tests can also help.3.Develop a learning agendaIn contrast to the stream of to-dos and complying with agendas of others, the learning agenda is development focused. In Leadership Development from a Complexity Perspective, Boyatzissays that "a person often needs a type ofpermission to let go of old habits and try new ones." A learning agenda provides that type of structure for exploration and learning.4.Experimentation and PracticeThe fourth step is to practice, look for feedback, and practice again. A consultant, coach or mentor should help the individual who has embarked on intentional change to find safe settings to practice the characteristics of the effective leader he or she envisions.5.Helping relationshipsCoaches, mentors, guides are very helpful to someone aiming to transitionto the ideal self through practicing greater EQ and inspirational leadership.No matter where we are in our journey toward Continuous Improvement, Emotional Intelligence is an essential tool in our tool kit.Paul C. Donehue is a Senior Associate atConway Management Company, a global management consulting firm that helps organizations of all types to increase operational efficiency and to make and sustain bottom-line gains.Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Paul_C._Donehue/1464438
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