Ron Price

“Emotional Intelligence—what is that about? Sounds like a modern version of standing in a circle holding hands, singing kumbaya." Many people undervalue the significance of developing emotional intelligence as part of professional development. However, the following research indicates this isn’t very intelligent.

• “It turns out that the single most important element in group intelligence is not the average, or highest, IQ, but emotional intelligence. A single participant who is low in EQ can lower the collective IQ of the entire group.” (Cooper & Sawaf)
• “At L’Oreal, employees selected on the basis of certain emotional competencies sold $91,370 more than salespeople selected with the company’s old selection procedure did, for a net revenue increase of $2,588,360. Employees selected on the basis of emotional competence also had 63% less turnover during the first year than those selected in the typical way.” (Spencer & Spencer, “Competence at Work: Models for Superior Performance”)
• “After supervisors in a manufacturing plant received training in emotional competencies, such as how to listen better and help employees resolve problems on their own, lost-time accidents were reduced by 50%, formal grievances were reduced from an average of 15 per year to 3 per year, and the plant exceeded productivity goals by $250,000.” (Psuric & Byham, “The New Look of Behavior Modeling”)
• “The higher the rank of a person considered to be a star performer, the more emotional intelligence capabilities showed up as the reason for his or her effectiveness. When I compared star performers with average ones in senior leadership positions, nearly 90% of the difference in their profiles was attributable to emotional intelligence factors rather than cognitive abilities.” Daniel Goleman, author of, “Emotional Intelligence”
• “…McClelland found that when senior managers had a critical mass of emotional intelligence capabilities, their divisions outperformed yearly earnings goals by 20%. Meanwhile, division leaders without that critical mass underperformed by almost the same amount.” Harvard Business Review, January 2004

If these results don’t pique your interest about EQ, how to measure and how to develop it, there isn’t any reason to read on…

EQ is the ability to understand and use the power of emotions to facilitate high levels of collaboration and productivity. Stated another way, EQ means, “I understand myself and others well, and I use this awareness to create much greater results.”

EQ begins with understanding your own strengths, weaknesses, values and goals. This deep level of self-awareness leads to gaining control over your emotional triggers (self regulation) and a high drive to achieve (motivation). In addition to knowing and mastering your own emotions, EQ includes high levels of empathy. This is the ability to understand the feelings and needs of others. When this connection with others is combined with social skills, such as the ability to influence, lead and develop others, high productivity is the natural result.

Most people recognize that to become proficient working with a piece of equipment, we need to develop an understanding of the equipment, to practice with it (remember Drivers Ed classes?) and to have someone mentor us in how to use it. Yet, with human beings who are much more complex than any piece of equipment, we often assume we get it and we don’t need any formal training or mentoring, other than the “Intro to Psych” class we took as freshmen in college. But the statistics don’t lie (review the stats listed above once again and begin to reflect on what they might mean for you and your organization).

• Emotional intelligence isn’t a luxury tool you can dispense with in tough times. It’s a basic tool that, deployed with finesse, is the key to professional success.” Harvard Business Review, April, 2003
• “CEOs are hired for their intellect and business expertise—and fired for a lack of emotional intelligence.” Daniel Goleman

Emotional Intelligence cannot be “caught” in the traditional training found in a classroom. Research has uncovered a simple pathway to growing high levels of EQ.

1. First, we must be motivated. A person needs to want to change how they interact with and influence others.
2. Second, a student of EQ needs to engage in “deliberate practice”.  In his book, “Talent is Overrated”, Geoff Colvin rightly points out that deliberate practice is made up of three realities: first, you have to practice the right activities the right way (or you reinforce bad habits the more you practice, making the fix even harder). Second, you have to practice repeatedly to master anything of significance. Finally, practice in and off itself is rarely enjoyable. Without a goal to reach for, it is almost impossible to practice with the precision, discipline and consistency necessary to develop high EQ.
3. Finally, developing high levels of EQ requires soliciting and receiving constant feedback. It cannot be accomplished alone. Those who develop the most emotional intelligence do it with someone trained in EQ to mentor, guide and measure their progress. In one study, behavioral improvements after traditional classroom training improved by 10% after two years. For those who received ongoing feedback and reinforcement from an EQ qualified coach, the improvements were 47% for their intrapersonal skills (self awareness, self regulation, motivation) and 75% for their interpersonal skills (empathy, social skills).

Because EQ is about intrapersonal and interpersonal skills, most people think they can informally discover and develop it. If you already have high EQ, wonderful. If you could benefit from improving your self-awareness, self regulation, motivation, empathy and social skills, then EQ mentoring may be the key to top performance for you.