We all know of countless examples where people who weren\u2019t the smartest in their class went on to become highly successful leaders in say politics or business. Similarly, many young \u201crocket scientists\u201d we thought destined for leadership greatness ended up middle of the road\u2026.or worse. And why did individuals of distinctly moderate IQ\u2019s like Richard Branson and Ronald Reagan (still one of the most popular US Presidents ever) become recognised as great leaders in their professional spheres? The answer probably lies in their emotional intelligence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Emotional Intelligence or EQ as its often known, is a buzz word in the lexicon of modern leadership theory. But what is it, how does it influence great leaders and is it something that can be learned and improved?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The concept of emotional intelligence first gained real traction in a 1998 Harvard Business Review article \u201cInside the mind of a leader\u201d by Daniel Goleman. It remains a seminal article on the subject.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Goleman researched 200 large global companies and found that while the qualities traditionally associated with great leaders like intelligence, toughness, determination and vision are present in all great leaders, they are not enough. Of course they matter, but Goleman says only as \u201cthreshold capabilities . He contends that great leaders also need high degrees of emotional intelligence. In fact, Goleman\u2019s research found that as an ingredient of excellent performance, EQ was twice as important as other more traditional factors like IQ and technical skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Goleman focuses on 5 key characteristics that define EQ; 3 relating to self-management; Self-Awareness, Self-Regulation<\/strong> and Motivation<\/strong> and 2, to the management of others, Empathy<\/strong> and Social Skills<\/strong data-aos=\"fade-up\">.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Self-awareness is defined as the ability to recognise and understand ones moods, emotions and drives and crucially, their effect on others. Characteristics of self-aware leaders include; self-confidence, realistic self-assessment and ability not to take oneself too seriously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Self-regulation is seen as the ability to control and redirect disruptive and negative thoughts and channel them in a positive direction. Leaders with strong self-regulation are open to change, comfortable with uncertainty and pressure, trustworthy and operate with high levels of integrity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Great leaders are Motivated by a will to succeed that goes beyond money or status. Their motivation is characterised by drive, optimism, focus and a relentless commitment to a collective (vs an individual) purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Empathy relates to a leaders ability to understand the emotions of others and manage them effectively. Empathic leaders are strong at building high-performance teams with different cultural and emotional make-ups and are highly customer centric.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, enhanced Social-Skills are required to effectively manage important relationships through building strong external networks and internal teams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While Goleman asserts that there is a strong genetic component to EQ he does identify ways in which leaders can develop and improve it. As EQ is largely born of the brain\u2019s limbic system it can be learned and improved through a combination of; motivational change, continuous practice and regular performance feedback.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So what are the implications of EQ for business leaders and HR professionals focused on identifying and developing the leaders of tomorrow? I will leave you with 3\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n Conventional wisdom would have us believe that the characteristics of EQ were nice to have in great leaders \u2013 more recent wisdom (and research) proves otherwise.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" We all know of countless examples where people who weren\u2019t the smartest in their class went on to become highly successful leaders in say politics or business. Similarly, many young \u201crocket scientists\u201d we thought destined for leadership greatness ended up middle of the road\u2026.or worse. And why did individuals of distinctly moderate IQ\u2019s like Richard […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":3464,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","region":[60],"news_type":[19],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n