Emotional intelligence is how you handle things socially and how you interact with others emotionally. There are many things that play into ones level of emotional intelligence such as environment, attitudes, belief, expectations, and behavior. Emotional intelligence is measured as ones emotional quotient or EQ. Unlike someone’s IQ their EQ can go up or down depending on the situation, environment, and other factors. You have control over your own EQ by learning how to change the factors that determine it. I am hoping to give you a good understanding of how you can evaluate your own EQ so that you will have the tools needed to control you EQ.
Mind Set The key to a higher EQ is to have the right mind set. Learning how to have the right mind set can be challenging because you are changing your first instinct of response to any given situation. Instead of being upset because you have to do a task you hate focus more on how to do that job efficiently so you don’t have to spend as much time on the task. If you have the belief that you can complete the task efficiently you will have a brighter attitude about it. Having a good attitude about having to complete the task leads to better behavior and a good performance which will set a good example for others working around you. If you improve your over all approach to the dreaded task then you improve the environment around you which will hopefully improve other peoples EQ as well. All of these factors can also have a negative effect on your EQ. the wrong mindset can lower ones EQ which in turn will have an negative effect on your environment and others around you.
EQ in the work place
There are many examples of EQ in the work place; I have a few examples at my job. One example of high EQ would be my boss John. To me John has a high EQ because he is always trying to make the work environment better. John has always seemed to reserve his reaction to any situation until he has had time to evaluate the best way to handle things. He also evaluates situations quickly, which I believe comes from years of experience. For years during the summer we were very under staffed and worked way more hours than necessary. John realized that this was bad for the work environment and lead to poor attitudes from everyone, which will lead to lower EQs. John hired more people to do the job and the hours were much more realistic. People’s attitudes improved and the work environment got better, you might say everyone’s EQ went up. An example of low EQ in the work place would be when everyone gets over worked. I work the overnight shift so this happens often, mostly in the summer when we work longer hours. Near the end of our shift we all tend to get tired and we are usually running on energy drinks. When I am tired I tend to react without thinking, act on impulse. Because I have not learned to change my mind set my reactions are usually not positive or helpful. When you get into a downward spiral emotionally it can be very hard to turn things around, especially if others around you are as tired and emotional as you. Learning how to control your attitude, belief, and behavior will have a large impact on your EQ. Until I took this course I never really thought about how your interactions with others at work really affected your performance on the job. I guess as some level everyone knows if people are in a bad mood it affects everyone, but I have never thought about things at the level of an EQ before.
Room for improvement
I think the aspect of my EQ that needs most improvement is my instinctive reaction when dealing with others. I have always had a hard time getting what I am thinking out in words. I tend to react to situations then stop and think about things. I need to work on thinking before reacting. This is very prevalent at work. I have been with the same company for almost 7 years and I know how to do my job well. Unfortunately we have a high turn around with
