When you learn to live with yourself, you learn to live with others.
Differences between Emotional Intelligence (EI) and Intellectual Quotient (IQ)
In general, the different authors agree that the intellectual coefficient (IQ) is a way of estimating the potential of an individual in relation to their skills in mathematical reasoning and basic thought processes (observation, analysis, synthesis, comparison, inferences…). And for many, this value would be an indicator of their academic or professional success.
On the other hand, emotional intelligence goes much further, since it is the ability of an individual to recognize the meaning of their emotions and their relationships in order to manage them in such a way that they can obtain the objectives that they set. According to Howard Gardner, a psychologist at Harvard University School of Education, 80% of the success or failure in the activities we undertake - family, academic, professional, etc. - depend on emotional intelligence.
In this order of ideas, emotional intelligence maintains that you can have great capacity and skills to solve a particular problem, however if you "allow" emotions of uncertainty, anger, frustration, depression or other to dominate the situation, it will much more difficult and even, it will not be possible to solve it.
Mayer and Salovey model on IE
At the beginning of the 90`s, John Mayer and Peter Salovey, precursors of Emotional Intelligence (EI) introduced the concept that emotions indicate how we relate to the surrounding environment (people and objects); and how the way we relate is affected in turn by the way we handle our emotions. Thus, these authors define EI as " the ability to perceive one's own feelings and those of others, distinguish between them and use this information to guide one's own thinking and behavior ".
Therefore, they present the Model of four stages or branches, through which EI can be developed gradually. Each of these stages will be a level of abilities and skills to drive emotions.
- Stage 1. Perceive emotions: in this first stage, the individual is able to realize what happens both in himself and in others by perceiving faces, expressions or images. Stage 2. Using emotions to facilitate thinking: When has identified that something is happening (in us and in others) then it is necessary to develop the skills to use these emotions as part of a reasoning process. Stage 3. Understanding of emotions: When emotions have already been perceived and channeled, it is It is necessary to be able to understand what happens with these: the transition between one emotion and another, as they manifest (verbally, bodily, etc.) Stage 4. Emotion management: The fourth skill is the most advanced state,It is related to how emotions are managed and how intra and interpersonal emotional relationships are established.
In general, it could be said that the product of a global analysis, Mayer and Salovey laid the foundations of how a healthy development of emotional intelligence can be achieved in a way that allows the individual to behave rationally in order to achieve personal and professional success.
Dr. Reuven Bar On model.
Among the great scholars of this phenomenon, there is Dr. Reuven Bar On who argues that there are a large number of factors that condition emotional intelligence, and presents a model concentrated in five large groups: intrapersonal; the interpersonal; those referring to adaptability; those of stress management and mood and motivation factors.
- Intrapersonal factors, as its name indicates, condition the handling of emotions according to how the individual relates to himself. Thus, self-concept, self-awareness, assertiveness, independence and self-actualization are considered. This group of factors highlight the importance of self-knowledge and self-worth, loving oneself, respecting ourselves as a human being, understanding what happens within us, being able to express ourselves and defend our positions assertively, know our strengths and be able to commit ourselves to ourselves. Interpersonal factors are associated with the individual's ability to relate to their environment, the ability to recognize emotions in others, understand them, show interest in others, participate in the development of other people, give and receive affection,among other. These are made up of empathy, social responsibility and interpersonal relationships. The adaptability factors represent the abilities and skills of the individual to adjust healthily to their environment. These are made up of reality testing, flexibility, and problem solving. These factors highlight the importance of being realistic in identifying and managing emotions, in the ability to give in and to open up to eventually receive (flexibility), and how to face and resolve problems. condition the development of emotional intelligence, acquire the ability to effectively manage our emotions in times of pressure, turbulence, and other aggravating factors,it is vital to our health and personal and professional growth. The elements grouped here correspond to stress tolerance and impulse control Mood and motivational factors, such as optimism and happiness, are drivers and stabilizers of emotional intelligence, knowing how to recognize our emotions, live them, channel them and overcome them they are determining factors in the success or failure of our personal and professional life.channeling and overcoming them are determining factors in the success or failure of our personal and professional life.channeling and overcoming them are determining factors in the success or failure of our personal and professional life.
It becomes clear that the management of emotions depends on a wide range of factors, the environment in which we develop, how we interact with it or how we decide to respond to these interactions; As Dr. Lair Ribeiro quotes, in his book Success does not come by chance:
Success is getting what you want, happiness is appreciating what has already been achieved
Obstacles to overcome to develop Emotional Intelligence
Tolerance to stress is one of the factors that condition the development of emotional intelligence, this is a reflection of self-control. In this sense, this ability is what allows us to cope with situations of pressure, injury or problems effectively, keeping conflicting impulses and emotions under control and generating and applying strategies to overcome them. It could be said that it is not only the fact of coping with stress, but redirecting it to more positive situations.
On the other hand, emotional intelligence is directly proportional to factors such as self-knowledge and self-control. The development of the skills and abilities that underpin it allows to control and / or overcome negative emotions such as anger and aggressiveness more quickly.
Although being upset by a situation can be a persistent and difficult to control state of mind, it is necessary to learn to manage it in view of the great amount of damage that it brings; some of them:
- It affects interpersonal relationships: Emotions are contagious. If we react with anger and aggression, the people around us are more likely to react in the same way. On the other hand, when these emotions take over the thought process, empathy is not possible and we think only about what interests us. It hinders problem solving. Hostile reactions do not allow us to be objective and effective strategists in conflict resolution since they "cloud our minds."
One of the most effective and most used methods to "control" this type of mood is known as "time out"; where the individual distances himself from the source of anger, avoiding or stopping the escalation of hostile and irritating thoughts. These types of uncontrolled hostile emotions are self-destructive.
In general, it is not about not getting angry, it is about raising awareness of this emotion and not allowing it to speak, gesture or move for us, and even more so that it does not become permanent: To solve a problem, we do not have to go to war. When you start to "work" on knowing yourself and properly managing your emotions, you begin to see changes in your environment, which directly influences your family, work and social environment.
Self-knowledge and Emotional Self-Control as a tool for success
As its name implies, self-knowledge implies knowing yourself. In this area we speak of the ability to be aware of who we are, our good side and our emotional "bad" side; how and when we react; know each of our responses to different situations. In conclusion, it refers to the ability to recognize one's own emotions and feelings and identify what caused them.
Likewise, self-knowledge is the key to emotional intelligence, since knowing our emotions will make it easier to control them at the right time. Although this ability is not innate, it is a skill that can be developed with a certain level of dedication on our part, and for this it is necessary to internalize in our process of thoughts, emotions and feelings and actions in the face of the various situations that arise. present in everyday life.
On the other hand, self-control is usually expressed as the ability to adequately handle conflicting emotions and impulses. This ability is an essential requirement for the development of emotional intelligence and vice versa. People not only have to identify what happens within ourselves in relation to our emotions, but we also have to channel them so that they do not interfere with our thinking and with the functioning of our daily lives.
Finally, it is of great importance to control, mitigate and overcome negative moods (anger, sadness, among others) in a timely manner in order to recover more quickly from life's setbacks.
Development of Empathy and its impact on the Organizational Climate
Empathy is related to the recognition of the emotions of others. It is the ability that allows us to know what others feel, to go beyond verbal messages to perceive what is happening to them through their bodily expressions, their attitudes. To achieve this, it is necessary to be receptive, sensitive, respectful, it requires our attention and our real interest.
Being a competence, a potential or a capacity put into practice, Daniel Goleman - author of several books on emotional intelligence - establishes that there are five competences that characterize empathy: understanding others, service orientation, the development of others, harnessing diversity and political awareness. In this way, an empathic person:
- She opens herself to understanding the people around her, tries to perceive how they feel, understand their needs in order to help them. She anticipates the needs of other people, putting herself in the place of others. She tries to motivate and help others. others to develop their own potentials, reinforces the achievements of others Recognizes the growth opportunities offered by interacting with people from different backgrounds Understands the differences and tensions that can form around power relations and is about channel them in favor of the group.
An example of empathy and its many benefits is found within organizations. When a manager has developed his competences in emotional intelligence and has empathy as a daily exercise, his staff feel motivated, supported and understood by him, they trust him. These qualities make him more than a boss, a true leader. In this sense, cohesive and effective work teams are promoted, as well as the perception of the environment of each of its members improves considerably.
In this way, when a manager manages to strengthen relations with his work team immediately, positive results are seen on quality and productivity, absenteeism, demotivation and poor performance problems are reduced; a fully functional organizational climate is generated.
Importance of Setting "Positive Goals"
To achieve goals of all kinds, planning is always a good tool; be it personal and / or professional, it is extremely important to set objectives that are clear, concrete, and well defined in time and space. Additionally, periodic reviews should be made of the activities carried out or to be carried out to make the necessary adjustments.
In this context, by setting positive goals, by "visualizing" our desires and goals, by focusing and working on what we want, we increase the chances of success and happiness itself.
For its part, although stress is generally related to negative situations, it is necessary to emphasize that there is in fact a “positive stress”, which rather prompts us to reorient our objectives and to try harder for the things we want without coming into conflict with the balance of our days. This is precisely where self-control acts, in order to take control of situations that could be stressful and use them to our advantage.
As we develop our emotional abilities, we begin to be more patient with ourselves, to focus not only on problems but on how to overcome them, to let go of the things that we definitely cannot change and see that we can always start over. Hope and faith also play a very important role in achieving our goals.
People with motivation to achieve, commitment, perseverance, initiative and optimism not only manage to be successful in what they undertake but also have a multiplying effect since they are sources of inspiration for the people who are around them.
Consequently, when projecting ourselves as an organization, when we begin to comprehensively plan our activities, we segment the major goals into stages and compare results with the objectives originally set. This obviously, while taking into account the possible unforeseen events and changes in the environment, then we begin to create teams that are not demotivated or frustrated by partially achieving or not achieving a goal, but rather understand that it is necessary to review the different stages and reinvent themselves. if necessary.
Management within the Work Team
When a manager fosters a positive functional climate with cohesive work teams, he immediately improves the quality and productivity of the organization.
Managers must focus on optimizing interpersonal relationships within work teams, including themselves as part of the group. He must understand that he cannot generate changes or improvements in the groups if he does not participate in them, for this he must develop empathy skills that generate an environment of respect, trust and commitment on the part of all the members.
Effective teamwork affects job satisfaction, as well as individual and group performance. In this sense, profitable relationships allow the team to work towards a common goal, and bring out the best in everyone.
This is what Engineer Juan Carlos Caramés said in a forum on Social Intelligence (2008) at FACES: “… people do not have a sense of belonging to companies, people develop a sense of belonging to work groups ”.
For his part, Ojeda (2000) states that "High-performance teams require people who, from their speech, their body posture and their emotions, remain lit in an empowering energy, so that the team can radiate light and strength." Thus, the management of emotions is a determining factor in interpersonal relationships, and these are manifested not only with words but also with their gestural development, their face, a look. Hence, on certain occasions, even a snort can trigger a conflict of Roman magnitudes.
It is necessary for there to be an understanding that the way you express your emotions in all their dimensions will set the tone for how you will be treated and in turn, how cohesive the group in which you operate will be.
Begin at the beginning:
Ideas to raise awareness of HOW WE ARE and develop more positive environments.
- Start by thinking that the only person who can change your perception of your world is yourself. You have already thought about what you want to achieve in the coming year and what activities you will do to achieve them. Recognize what your main weaknesses are but above all Identify your strengths, the objective is to enhance them. Now, how are you going to improve on those weak points? You can always ask for help… Make a count of your relationships, identify how you handle your emotions in different settings: family, work and social. What things are causing you stress? How do you usually react to these situations? How do you perceive your work environment and your work team? What can you do to optimize that appreciation? Evaluate yourself, how often do you take time to reflect on your life,its environment and how could it be improved? Starting from the principle that everything can be better than it already is.
Bibliographic references
- United Nations Association in Venezuela - ANUV (2008). Diploma in Emotional Intelligence Bar-On, Reuven (2012). Available in: Covey, S. (1997). The seven habits of highly effective people. Ediciones Paido Iberica, SA. Martin, D. & Boeck, K. (2007). EQ. What is emotional intelligence. Editorial IMPROVE. Spain. Ojeda, Amancio (2010). Take Action: 72 Ways to Fuel Leadership. Editorial of the University of Zulia. Ribeiro, Lair (2000). Success does not come by chance. URANO editions.
