The Power of a Leader with high EQ “Emotional Intelligence”

When I think about my greatest skill as a leader and what I have often been asked in many settings, that is always “What is your greatest strength as a leader”? Recently being asked this I took a moment to reflect on my “Leadership Style”, my technical skills and my entire 23-year career as a People and Process leader. Reflecting on what strength has served me well no matter the role, product or company I served? No matter the size or job skill of the team I’m leading one thing has always stuck out……my ”extremely high Emotional Intelligence”. Many leaders whom I’ve reported to immediately identify this skill in me. They’ve often landed on this after observing how engaged and passionate I was about people and how in love I was with the idea of helping others realize their highest potential.

Early in my career I quickly identified those who were left in my charge weren’t going to perform for me because “I said so”, they needed to know that I valued them as much as I needed them to value the customer and excellence. In short…I actually and genuinely cared for them. Every team I’ve ever managed was met with great success and performance because as a leader I connected with my emotional side and technical side to achieve remarkable performance results and business outcomes.

 What is EQ/Emotional Intelligence? Emotional intelligence is defined as the ability to understand and manage your own emotions, as well as recognize and influence the emotions of those around you. The term was first coined in 1990 by researchers John Mayer and Peter Salovey but was later popularized by psychologist Daniel Goleman.

Goleman highlighted the importance of emotional intelligence in leadership, telling the Harvard Business Review, “The most effective leaders are alike in one crucial way: They all have a high degree of what has come to be known as emotional intelligence. It’s not that IQ and technical skills are irrelevant. They do matter, but...they are the entry-level requirements for executive positions.” According to Daniel Goleman there are five key elements to it:

1. self-awareness;
2. self-regulation;
3. motivation;
4. empathy, and;
5. social skills.

What happens when leaders are emotionally intelligent? Leaders who are emotionally intelligent foster safe environments, where employees feel comfortable to take calculated risks, suggest ideas and to voice their opinions. In such safe environments, working collaboratively isn’t just an objective, but it gets woven into the organizational culture as whole.

When a leader is emotionally intelligent, they can use emotions to drive the organization forward. Leaders often have the responsibility of effecting any necessary changes in the organization, and if they are aware of others’ possible emotional reactions to these changes, they are able to plan and prepare the most optimal ways to make them.

Furthermore, emotionally intelligent leaders don’t take things personally and are able to forge ahead with plans without worrying about the impact on their egos. Personal vendettas between leaders and employees are one of the commonest hindrances to productivity in many workplaces.

What happens when leaders aren’t emotionally intelligent? Leadership is a naturally stressful mandate, being responsible for the fate of hundreds or even thousands of other people can take its toll. Leaders who are low in emotional intelligence tend to unravel in stressful situations because they fail to handle their own emotions and this might manifest as verbal attacks on others and being passive aggressive.

This can create an even more stressful environment, where workers are always walking on eggshells trying to prevent the next outburst from happening. This often has disastrous effects on productivity and team cohesion because the employees stay too distracted by this fear to focus on work and bond.

Not being emotionally intelligent hinders collaboration within the organization. When a leader doesn’t have a handle on their own emotions and reacts inappropriately, most of their employees tend to feel nervous about contributing their ideas and suggestions, for fear of how the leader will respond.

However, a leader who lacks emotional intelligence doesn’t necessarily lash out at their employees. Not being emotionally intelligent can also mean an inability to address situations that could be fraught with emotion. Most leaders deal with conflict, and a leader who isn’t clued into others’ emotions will often have a difficult time recognizing conflict in the first place let alone dealing effectively resolving it.

If emotional intelligence attributes to 60% of an employee's job performance, why is it not more valued among senior leadership? Travis Bradberry shares his research that proves why EQ is so important when promoting leaders within an organization. Enjoy this video, I did! But of course he's preaching to the choir with me (wink)! And please leave a comment and share your thoughts.