HR And Business Discourse With Patricia Abena Kissi: Effective Leadership, The Role Of Emotional Intelligence

Emotional Intelligence (EI), which is measured by Emotional Quotient (EQ), became popular in 1995 as a result of a research that indicated that people with average Intelligent Quotients (IQs) outperformed those with the highest IQs 70% of the time as a result of their EI. This result confounded people who had always assumed IQ was the sole determinant of success. Subsequently, decades of research has confirmed EQ as the critical factor that sets star performers apart from the rest of employees.

EI means the awareness of our own emotions and those of others, their influence on us, and how to manage them in positive and meaningful ways. It is the ability to perceive and understand our own emotions and the behaviour that flows predictably from them. There are two important aspects of EI: the ability to identify, control and express our emotions; and the ability to understand, interpret and respond to the emotions of others.

We cannot predict EQ based on how smart someone is. There is a difference between IQ, EQ and Personality. IQ is the ability to learn, and it is said to be the same at age 15 as it is at age 50. EQ, on the other hand, is a flexible set of skills that can be acquired and improved with practice. Although some people are naturally more emotionally intelligent than others, anyone can develop high EQ. While a high IQ may give you great intellectual and technical abilities, a high EQ can make you become an effective leader and give you poise, cheerfulness, assertiveness, responsibility, sympathy, commitment and a caring attitude.

With a high IQ you could get employed, but with a high EQ you are more likely to get promoted faster in your career. A high IQ can make you very good at your daily work routine, but with a high EQ you can thrive during times of change and uncertainty. Personality, on the other hand, is that which defines each of us. It is the result of innate preferences, such as the inclination toward introversion or extroversion. However, like IQ, personality can't be used to predict EQ; and it also doesn't change. IQ, EQ, and personality together explain the behaviour of a person.

E Intelligence is described as consisting of the following five competencies:

1. Self-Awareness: Knowing our emotions and understanding the tendencies to act in certain situations. Leaders with high EQ are able to recognize emotions as they happen. This helps them to have a clear understanding of their strengths and weaknesses; address problems and handle any future complications.

2. Self-regulation: The ability to manage our emotions and preferences. Leaders who regulate themselves effectively hardly verbally attack others, make hasty or emotional decisions, stereotype people, or compromise their values.

3. Self-motivation: This has to do with emotional tendencies that facilitate the achievement of our goals. Self-motivated leaders work consistently toward their goals, and have very high standards for the quality of their work.

4. Social Awareness: This means being aware of others' feelings, needs and concerns. Leaders with high EQ are able to put themselves in the employee's shoes and give helpful feedback. This helps them to get results and obtain respect and loyalty.

5. Social skills: This connotes the ability to elicit desirable results from others. Leaders with high EQ are great communicators; and have good people skills.

It is widely accepted that soft skills such as interpersonal skills greatly affect how people feel and respond to their leaders. If they feel valued, appreciated, and heard, they are engaged and motivated to achieve goals set out by leadership. Leaders who possess high EQ understand the importance of communicating effectively with their team members, and of treating each team member with respect. Most people respond best to leaders who treat them with respect; and make them feel valued.

Effective leaders tend to possess high levels of EQ. Leaders with high EQ have high standards of integrity and outstanding people skills that make for effectiveness. A leader who understands his or her own emotions is much more likely to understand and empathize with others. This is why EQ is so valuable for effective leadership.

The good news is that leaders with low EQ can improve on their EQ and become effective leaders. The first step is for you to take an EQ self-assessment test to appreciate your level of EQ (You can check online for such tests). Once that is done, you can adopt the following strategies to improve on your EQ: Observe how you react to people and decide to react better; examine how you react to stressful situations and learn to keep your emotions under control when things go wrong; hold yourself accountable. Don't play the blame game; practice deep-breathing exercises to calm yourself; examine how your actions affect others before you take those actions; whenever you assign a task to someone and sense disappointment in their reaction, don't ignore it. Address their feelings.

There is evidence to prove that EQ is central to leadership effectiveness. Leaders with high EQ tend to be more effective than leaders with low EQ. Leaders who seek to be effective must therefore endeavour to improve on their EQ levels. There may be leaders who were born with high EQ, but the majority of us can learn and develop high EQ. Make that decision now.

The writer, Mrs Patricia Abena Kissi, is an HR and business consultant, and the CEO of SEDAT Consult Limited. SEDAT Consult provides business support in the areas of recruitment, staff and HR outsourcing, training and development, HR advisory, and business development to meet the business, staffing and training needs of start-ups and SMEs, as well as well-established companies in the country. Our mission is to ease the business burdens of organisations through the provision of innovative, practical training, research, and human resources solutions using proven techniques to address the business needs of our clients.

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