Introduction
No one can deny that emotions have played an important role in world history. According to Stein (2018), they are a signaling item that helped primitive people escape and survive many threats. Simultaneously, emotions are equally significant in every person’s everyday life. The rationale behind this fact implies that when people are happy, they are more kind and responsive to others. On the contrary, sadness leads to the fact that individuals cannot effectively cooperate with others.
In addition to controlling and acknowledging the impact of their own emotions, an individual should understand those of others. A person’s ability to manage their own and understand others’ emotions is known as emotional intelligence (EQ). It is challenging to overestimate the significance of emotions and EQ in the workplace, where cooperation among employees impacts organizational performance and the achievement of success. Thus, ordinary employees and senior managers should develop their EQs because the latter is as important as cognitive intelligence.
Definition of Emotional Intelligence
To begin with, one should explain the precise meaning of the selected abbreviation. According to Stein (2018), EQ is “the ability to perceive emotions, to access and generate emotions so as to assist thought, to understand emotions and emotional knowledge, and to regulate emotions” (p. 31). This definition demonstrates that people with high EQ should be able to understand and control their emotions to minimize their impact on interactions with others.
Components of Emotional Intelligence
EQ is a complex phenomenon because it consists of a few competencies. They include self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management. Self-awareness is a person’s ability to perceive their emotions and understand tendencies regarding when and why some emotions arise (Bradberry & Greaves, 2009). This competence allows people to be prepared for various stimuli and be masters of their emotions rather than the reverse.
Self-management is based on the previous one and implies that individuals keep working or cooperating with others irrespective of what they currently feel (Bradberry & Greaves, 2009). This skill ensures that people avoid situations when some emotions paralyze them. Social awareness is the ability of a person to predict and respect what others think or feel (Bradberry & Greaves, 2009). If one has this competence, they will not insult others because they know what to say and when to remain silent.
Finally, relationship management is responsible for effective communication and conflict management (Bradberry & Greaves, 2009). These competencies demonstrate that EQ is not a homogenous phenomenon, which denotes that it is necessary to master a few skills and abilities to succeed in emotion management.
The Role of Emotional Intelligence at Work
EQ is essential for workplace success because it is closely connected with leadership. A person can effectively lead others if they have appropriate skills. Goleman et al. (2013) stipulate that the four competencies above can be further divided into lower abilities that are fundamental for leaders.
Firstly, an individual should be adaptable because it ensures that people are comfortable with unavoidable processes that can frequently affect organizations and employees (Goleman et al., 2013). Secondly, being a leader implies that a person is more responsible for the overall processes. That is why such an individual should take the initiative and be ambitious to set appropriate outcomes and achieve them (Goleman et al., 2013).
Thirdly, good leaders are optimists because they understand that negative emotions are destructive. Finally, managers should succeed in developing inspirational and motivational skills because they are required to make subordinates understand the importance of some changes and force them to pursue them (Goleman et al., 2013). This discussion indicates that people should develop their EQ to become effective leaders.
Definition of Intelligence Quotient
Since the paper focuses on the importance of EQ and cognitive intelligence (IQ), presenting a specific definition of the latter is reasonable. According to Stein (2018), IQ is the “ability to concentrate and plan, to organize material, to use words to understand, assimilate, and interpret facts” (p. 27). In other words, IQ is used to measure people’s mathematical skills, vocabulary, memory, and visual-motor coordination (Stein, 2018). People with higher IQs are likely to cope with more challenging tasks and make better decisions. That is why employers often look for more intelligent employees, and IQ tests are frequently used during job interviews.
The Need to Balance Cognitive and Emotional Intelligence
However, it is impossible to mention that IQ is the only criterion for assessing a person’s potential qualities. Stein (2018) stipulates that people have various kinds of intelligence, and it is challenging to state that any of them is more important than the others. Even the most intelligent employees become less effective if their negative emotions lead to their worsened performance.
Simultaneously, a person with the highest IQ score can harm an organization if they do not understand others’ emotions, leading to frequent conflicts. That is why employers are additionally encouraged to draw attention to their employees’ EQ. Individuals with balanced IQ and EQ scores achieve the highest workplace success. This statement denotes that a person should have reasonable cognitive and emotional competencies and skills to succeed in the professional environment.
Personal Experience of Emotional Intelligence
The discussion above relies on facts from credible and reliable literature, and my personal experience allows me to understand the importance of EQ. I always cooperate with other people, including relatives, friends, peers, and strangers, and I noticed that emotions affect these interactions and could result in conflicts. That is why I started reading literature a few years ago to understand how emotions impact people and how to control them.
At that time, I discovered the EQ concept and started mastering the appropriate competencies and skills. That is why I know much about emotion management now, and this fact allows me to state that I have a high EQ score. Consequently, I do my best to ensure that my negative emotions do not result in my aggressive attitude toward others. I additionally perceive others’ emotions to understand how to behave with these individuals. Thus, I am sure that if many people have excellent EQ, interpersonal collaboration will be more effective in all life spheres.
Conclusion
In conclusion, sufficient evidence from credible sources demonstrates that EQ is a significant phenomenon. It allows people to control their own emotions and understand those of others. This skill contributes to effective cooperation among individuals and leads to fewer conflicts.
EQ is homogenous because it consists of four competencies. Each of them is further subdivided into smaller skills that people should master to become effective leaders. Thus, individuals should have a high EQ to succeed professionally, but this intelligence is not the only requirement, which denotes that a balance between EQ and IQ should be maintained. This information demonstrates that emotional and cognitive intelligence is fundamental for people to achieve workplace success.
References
Bradberry, T., & Greaves, J. (2009). Emotional intelligence 2.0. TalentSmart.
Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R., & McKee, A. (2013). Primal leadership. Harvard Business School Press.
Stein, S. (2018). The EQ leader: Instilling passion, creating shared goals, and building meaningful organizations through emotional intelligence. Wiley and Sons.