In the past, there was little to no importance placed on soft skills and emotions in the workplace. The emphasis was on hard skills like budget management, strategic planning, risk management, etc. Today there’s an increasing realization of the importance of emotional intelligence (IE).

Studies have linked IE to more chances of getting hired, higher earning power, and greater job satisfaction. This holds true across all industries at all levels. The corporate landscape is shifting, and emotional intelligence is in demand. What is it, and why is it so important?

Why you need emotional intelligence (IE)

Emotional intelligence is defined as the ability to identify and regulate your own emotions and to understand the emotions of others. Daniel Goleman popularized the idea of emotional intelligence in 1998 when he wrote the book “Working with emotional intelligence.” Goleman identified five components to emotional intelligence: self-awareness, self-management, motivation, empathy, and relationship management.

Learning how to identify and regulate your own emotions means you can choose powerful and supportive beliefs instead of self-limiting ones. It requires some powerful beliefs to change your life. When you know how to regulate your own emotions and understand the emotions of others, you can change your life in many different ways.

It’s not that IQ and technical skills are unimportant in your career. But if you want to get hired, promoted, earn more, and have more job satisfaction in an executive position, emotional intelligence is what you need. If you want to lead others effectively, a high degree of emotional intelligence is important.

According to a leading essay help site, emotional intelligence will help you to successfully collaborate with others, manage teams, reduce stress in the workplace, inspire others and deliver appropriate feedback. There are direct ties between emotional intelligence and measurable business results. Here are the important five pillars of emotional intelligence as outlined by Goleman and how they can help you in your career.

Self-awareness

A popular essay writer service expert says that self-awareness means you can recognize your own strengths and weaknesses. You understand your emotional triggers and the effect this has on the way you think and on your behavior. You keep learning from your interactions with others by paying attention to your feelings and asking them for feedback.

If you’re feeling stressed or uninspired in your career, you need to think about why you may be feeling this way. When you can label your emotion and understand it, you can address it with the appropriate action. You may find you need to add to your skills to take on more inspiring work. If you’re stressed by having to deal with a difficult colleague, you can work on finding productive ways to deal with the situation.

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Photo by Aleksandra Sapozhnikova on Unsplash 

Self-management

Everyone has times when they’re in a bad mood, feel depressed, or angry. Self-management means learning to control those emotions rather than letting them control you and taking them out on others. Self-management does not mean denying feelings or hiding them but rather waiting for the right time and place to express them appropriately. It means that in a highly stressful and volatile situation, you can delay your response instead of acting impulsively at the moment.

When you take your time, you can react in an appropriate way. Impulsive behavior may not only have a negative effect on those around you but affect your own well-being. When you communicate clearly and respectfully, you achieve more engagement and connection with others and can offer helpful feedback.

Motivation

There are two different types of motivation. Intrinsic motivation comes from within. Unlike extrinsic motivation, it’s not dependent on money, recognition, or promotion. If you lack intrinsic motivation, you’re more inclined to be anxious, fearful of taking risks, and quick to abandon a project. Your lack of intrinsic motivation can also result in you being negative, which may have an impact on the morale of those around you.

Intrinsic motivation is what gives you the energy and passion for moving forward, despite obstacles or setbacks. Highly motivated people are an asset to any team because they’re ready to push themselves and keep improving their knowledge, skills, and output. They also tend to be very committed and are good at taking the initiative.

Empathy

If you have empathy, you are considerate of the feelings of others and can put yourself in their shoes. You are prepared to take their views and concerns into consideration. This makes you better at managing any conflict so that you and others can be more productive.

Empathy is an important quality to have when negotiating with customers or other stakeholders as it helps you to anticipate their needs and reactions. In the workforce of today, managers have to be emotionally intelligent in order to work with diverse teams, empathize with their feelings and leverage their strengths and unique perspectives. If they are empathetic, they can recognize and appreciate alternative points of view. This means they are open to innovative approaches and different ways to solve problems.

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Photo by Aleksandra Sapozhnikova on Unsplash 

Relationship management

Relationship management relates to interpersonal skills and is all about building up a level of respect, rapport, and genuine trust with others. Active listening, honest communication, and a touch of humor can go a long way to consolidating all your relationships with others.

Managers with emotional intelligence will remain calm when those around them are reacting emotionally. They will inspire and guide a team, bringing out the best in terms of performance. The strong relationships they build make the team more engaged and productive.

[Related: 7 Essential Steps For Building Good Relationships At Work]

The bottom line

Some people may have more innate emotional intelligence than others, but it is possible to increase your emotional intelligence if you put in the effort. The brain’s plasticity enables you to do this, and as a result, you will build better relationships, reduce stress and improve your job satisfaction. Employers want to hire and promote candidates with high emotional intelligence because they outperform others in terms of customer satisfaction, are responsible for greater profit growth, enjoy their jobs more, and stay with the company for longer.

Author Bio:

Leon Collier belongs to the pro essay writers of the UK who currently works for Top British Essays. He is highly focused on his work and finds his motivation in challenging assignments, which makes him deliver quality work consistently. During his free time, he loves playing tabletop games with his friends. You can contact him via Twitter @LeonCollier12.