Why emotional intelligence is important at the workplace.

“If your emotional abilities aren’t in hand,

if you don’t have self-awareness,

if you are not able to manage your distressing emotions,

if you can’t have empathy and have effective relationships,

then no matter how smart you are, you are not going to get very far.”

-Daniel Goleman

Emotional intelligence (also known as Emotional Quotient or EQ) has gained prominence in recent years. We observe that it has been implemented in numerous settings, and several courses have been introduced in organizations, academic centres, and other institutions for the same. But what exactly is emotional intelligence, and why is it important for professionals, especially freshers.

At the nascent stage, it is referred to as the ability to recognize and regulate emotions in ourselves and others in order to empathize with others, convey one’s thoughts effectively, and relieve stress. People with high emotional intelligence are mostly successful in almost every task they perform. On the other hand, the Intelligence quotient is simply a measure of a person’s reasoning ability or intelligence.

Now, in every type of conversation, email, or meeting, communication takes place at two levels.‍

The primary level is logic.

The secondary level is emotional.

If you’ve noticed the logical parts of any meeting, you will understand that the meeting is composed of certain elements with which one might not be familiar. One may also realize that much of what happens at their workplace doesn’t make logical sense because of this second channel of communication that one may not be accustomed to.

Take another example.

Let’s say you are smarter than your boss at work, yet technically you are working under him, why so?‍

Or some questions like the below may pop up in your mind:‍

Why are others having such a negative reaction to me?‍

Why don’t people like me?‍

Why do people avoid trying to work with me?‍

Why do people who aren’t as smart as I keep getting promoted instead of me?‍

The answer is simply E.Q.‍

EQ segregates good performers from the great ones at the workplace. Ultimately, what affects our attitude and brings us one step ahead is how we manage our behaviour, navigate social complexities, and make personal decisions that enable us to achieve positive results. Hence, people with strong emotional intelligence are more likely to succeed than those with high IQs or relevant experience

Now, as a fresher definitely EI exceeds IQ because not only do freshers have to demonstrate their domain knowledge and technical proficiency but also establish themselves to be able to do so. For ensuring compliance and cooperation from colleagues, as well as for getting ahead, EI plays an important role.

EI facilitates the newcomers with skills like self-awareness and regulation, which further helps them win the trust of the people at the workplace. Moreover, another important component is social skills, which will become more important as and when the individual spends more time in the organization or moves up the hierarchy. Thus, freshers need to imbibe it even before they enter the professional world.