I was in an important meeting recently, arguing that an employee's attitude is as important as what level of work he/she produces. In the non-profit sector, we often overlook a problematic colleague under the guise of charity. This needs to change from "he's my pal- I can't confront him," to "for the good of the organization, I must confront him."
In 1994, Daniel Goleman pushed this idea of emotional intelligence to the forefront. He says the following:
"Emotional Intelligence is a master aptitude, a capacity that profoundly affects all other abilities, either facilitating or interfering with them."–Daniel Goleman, Emotional Intelligence, p. 80.
Ways to boost your EQ in the coming days:
- work on confrontation: don't put it off, fight clean and speak from the gut
- work on emotional response to problems: take a break, go for a walk, practice breathing
- work on attitude: if you're happy and you know it, inform your face of this reality- be a cheerful, nice person who ultimately will succeed
- be attentive to others: find ways to boost someone else's EQ through attentive listening and empathic understanding
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