How Emotionally Intelligent Are You? 4 Key Leadership Skills

‍Discover the 5 key emotional intelligence skills that great leaders don’t joke with. Take the quiz and power up your leadership impact!

Everwonder what separates a good manager from a truly inspiring leader?  

The answer might surprise you. It's not just technical skills or credentials. These are not necessary, but not sufficient, as Economists will say.

Successful leaders in these rapidly changing times have strong emotional skills.

What is Emotional Intelligence?

Emotional Intelligence is all about understanding and managing your own emotions, as well as recognizing and responding to the feelings of others.  

According to the man we call the father of Emotional Intelligence, Daniel Goleman,

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.

An emotionally skilful leader stays calm under pressure, motivates the team, and builds strong relationships.

These skills are the real thing.  They make you successful – in every area of your life.

Don’t joke with your emotional skills!

Imagine Jane and her team facing a tight deadline. The pressure is on, and tempers are starting to flare. An emotionally intelligent leader recognises the team's frustration and steps in before negativity takes hold. By understanding heremotions and those of her team, Jane can effectively navigate the situation and keep everyone focused on achieving the common goal.

Just as that great leader, Nelson Mandela once said, a leader unifies the people and heals the wounds of division.  

The 4 Key Emotional Intelligence Skills for Leaders

Self-Awareness:  This is the foundation of Emotional Intelligence. It's about understanding your strengths, weaknesses, triggers, and emotions.

A self-aware leader can identify how her emotions might impact decisions and team dynamics.  

For example, a leader who knows her tendency to become impatient when facing delays may address this recognising when impatience starts to build and taking a moment to pause and reflect before reacting.

To develop your self-awareness, reflect on your typical reactions to situations. What raises your panic button? Be open to feedback. Take personality assessments like DISC Profiles by PeopleKeys that help you discover your dominant behaviours in different environments.

Self-Regulation: This emotional skill marks you out for an effective self-leadership. It helps you to stay calm under pressure, control your impulses, and direct your emotions towards positive outcomes.

Think of a leader facing a difficult conversation with an employee.

The issues are personally important to each of them; so, emotions are clashing.Self-regulation by the leader means using subtle calming techniques to maintain a professional and respectful demeanour. By doing so, he can keep the conversation focused on issues and not on personalities, thereby, ensuring a productive outcome.

Motivation: Emotionally intelligent leaders inspire and motivate themselves and others. They set clear goals, maintain a positive attitude, and ignite a passion for the work. They are last in the team to give up or be discouraged.

The emotionally intelligent leader shares her vision for the future of the company,creating a sense of purpose and excitement for the team, motivating them to go the extra mile.

To boost your motivation attitude, focus on your "why" - the purpose behind your goal. Celebrate successes, both individual and team-based.  Don’t forget to recognise and high-five the small and big wins.

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Empathy: Empathy is the ability to see things from another person's perspective and understand their feelings.

An empathic leader connects with people or teams at a deeper level, build trust,and foster a sense of belonging.

Think of a team member who feels discouraged after a setback.  It takes an empathetic leader to listen attentively, validates the feelings, and offer support and encouragement to help the team member move forward.

Being skilful at questioning and listening are marks of a leader with empathy skill.The leader who knows how to ask appropriate open-ended questions, encourages others to share their experiences, and pays close attention to verbal and nonverbal cues. Keeping an open mind to see situations from different perspectives also deepens a leader’s empathy skills.

Self-Assessment:  Are You Emotionally Intelligent?

Think about your leadership style and how you navigate situations at work. Answer the following questions honestly to get a sense of your emotional intelligence strengths and areas for development.

Self-Awareness

·        Do I recognize my emotions as they arise?

·        How do my emotions typically affect my decision-making?

·        Can I identify my strengths and weaknesses as a leader?

Self-Regulation

·        Do I stay calm under pressure, or do my emotions get the best of me?

·        How do I manage stress and difficult situations?

·        Do I have healthy coping mechanisms for dealing with frustration or anger?

Motivation

·        What motivates me to come to work each day?

·        Am I good at setting and achieving goals?

·        Can I inspire and motivate others on my team?

Empathy

·        Am I a good listener? Do I pay attention to the concerns of others?

·        Can I see situations from different perspectives?

·        Do I create a safe space for open communication within myteam?

Coaching Moment

Once you've answered the self-assessment questions, take some time to analyse your responses.  For areas where you answered"no" or identified weaknesses, consider these next steps:

Identify specific actions: For example, if you struggle with recognising your emotions, try journaling your feelings after challenging situations.

Seek resources: Explore books, articles, or attend courses on developing emotional intelligence.

Find a coach or mentor:  Connect with a leader you admire and seek their guidance on building your emotional skills.

Developing your emotional intelligence is an ongoing journey. By consistently reflecting on your strengths and weaknesses, and taking action to improve, you can become a more effective and inspiring leader.

At OGS Learning, we help you improve your leadership skills to inspire teams and  lead with impact – Join our mailing list to receive more leadership content like this

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