Emotional Intelligence for Change

The Science of Change

What keeps business leaders up in the middle of the night?

One of the most common answers: 'How can I lead this change?'

“Relationships where people share a sense of purpose, along with a sense of caring make for the most effective change leaders,” according to Richard Boyatzis , author of the newly released The Science of Change.

These are what he calls “resonant leaders,” who are on the emotional wavelength of those they lead - ?that is, emotionally intelligent.

Take Dr. Peter Pisters, head of MD Anderson (the world’s Number One center for cancer treatment) whom Boyatzis cites as an example of a resonant leader. Pisters has said that emotional intelligence is crucial not just for how doctors treat patients, but how the center’s staff treat each other.

A resonant leader like Dr. Pisters, says Boyatzis, offers emotional leadership—both attuning to the feelings of others, but also creating a positive emotional field.

There are two hallmarks of such leaders: first, they articulate a shared vision, a sense of mission that resonates with everyone in their organization. Second, they model caring, the kind of empathy that makes people feel seen, understood and nurtured.

Dr. Pisters opens meetings, Boyatzis says, by reminding everyone their shared mission is to beat cancer. One measure of Dr. Pisters’ success as a leader: staff at MD Anderson have an engagement level of 92% versus the usual 20-30% found by independent organization-wide surveys.?

A shared vision, research reviewed in The Science of Change shows, is the strongest predictor of performance, whether measured by patients complying with what their doctor tells them to do, by successful innovations, or by many other indicators of success.?

Boyatzis, a professor at the Weatherhead School of Business at Case Western University, reviews a career-spanning 50 years of research on leadership effectiveness to make his case. While he includes the usual corporate surveys and case studies, he’s pushed the frontier of business research by using cutting-edge methods like brain scans to analyze how different leadership styles impact us.

?Emotions, he shows, play a pivotal role in organizational change that lasts.?

Resonant leaders attune to people in a way that puts them both on the same emotional wavelength. This creates an emotional contagion that offers people not just good feeling, but hope.

“In our decades of research,” Boyatzis says, “we keep finding the combination of a shared purpose and meaning, plus high-quality, caring relationships is a key to sustained change.”?

The key word here is ‘sustained’. Many organizational change efforts get started but then sputter out. To keep change going, say Boyatzis, requires “regular doses of shared vision and resonant relationships.”

Innovation—the lifeblood of any organization—depends on there being a positive emotional field, Boyatzis points out.

His research finds that people are more open to trying out alternatives and new possibilities when they are reassured by sharing positive feelings. The sense of psychological safety lets them take the risk of an innovative change.

However, the usual supposed drivers of sustained change—like specific goals, a problem-solution focus, or naming discrepancies between what’s really going on and some ideal—don’t motivate change. Such a focus, Boyatzis’ brain research finds, activates the stress system, which narrows people’s field of vision so that they fail to entertain new ideas.

“When we focus on specific goals,” he says “we don’t see the bigger picture. You want people to consider new alternatives.”

Bottom line: Sustained change demands the leader model a motivating, shared vision, plus emotional resonance.

And the very survival of every organization, big or small, depends on innovation and change.

Next Up...

Want to get better at handling emotional hijacking, managing conflict, or leading with empathy?

My facilitated online courses explore the four parts of EI from my model—Self-Awareness, Emotional Balance, Social Awareness, and Relationship Management—anchored by a “learn, apply, reflect” learning cycle.

You can learn with and from your cohort of EI practitioners from all over the world, diving into the 12 specific competencies we find in outstanding performers and leaders.

When you relate to others meaningfully and handle your emotional self better, people close to you feel that growth.

The next cohort starts January 20th. Grab your spot here.

Onward...

Purpose In The Workplace

In a recent column on purpose in the workplace, Elizabeth Solomon and I introduce Marjo Lips-Wiersma’s “Map of Meaning”. This model describes four pathways to experiencing meaning and hence, aligning with a sense of purpose:

• Integrity with Self: the meaning we get from living and working in alignment with our most authentic values
• Unity with Others: the meaning we get from belonging to a community or team where we feel supported and joyful
• Expressing Full Potential: the meaning we experience when our creativity is sparked and we are able to create and accomplish things
• Service to Others: the meaning we experience when we contribute to the well-being of the world and those around us

This map is particularly relevant right now. According to a recent Work Watch Report from Monster, 45% of employees are considering leaving their jobs within the next year due to dissatisfaction with their role.

While the departures may not happen tomorrow or even next month, for many workers, the decision has already been made.

This means employers are under pressure to treat their workforce well, including guiding them into a deeper understanding of how their values align with those of their firm.

You can read more about the 'Map of Meaning' here.

Or, if you are interested in helping employees be happier, you may want to read The ‘Good Life’ at Work, where we highlight how happier workers, not wealthier ones, are often the most engaged and committed.?

To Close...

A Recent Interview

I was a recent guest on the Automotive Leaders podcast hosted by Jan Griffiths . We talk about how EI can drive positive impact and innovation in the automotive industry (among others); what can happen when you shift from command and control leadership to an empathy-driven, people-centered approach; and why it’s time for leaders to ask, “How am I as a leader?” rather than “Who am I as a leader?”