Emotional Intelligence – The Making of a Brilliant Leader

Inspired Leadership

In the past, political and army leaders were mindlessly feared and obeyed on command, without hesitation. This archaic system based on fear and an unquestionable sense of duty is now, thankfully, a thing of the past. The social and organizational transformations impacting all aspects of our lives have made things considerably better across generations. Today’s work environment is a dynamic paradigm, where both managers and employees need to work together, constantly evolving and adapting to each other’s needs.

This complex ever changing work environment calls for a different type of leader: a leader who, first and foremost, knows when and how to collaborate, accept feedback, analyze it, and then be confident and decisive in his actions. Research has shown that more decisions are made today based upon a leader’s emotional, rather than intellectual reasoning. Too many people are making such critical decisions that not only affect themselves, but also those around them. For instance, someone who reacts (negative emotion) more so than responds (positive emotion) to a given situation, can bring about catastrophic results in their immediate and future surroundings.  

Therefore, learning how to regulate one’s emotions is the foundation of making better decisions and creating stronger relationships both personal and professional. What is more: this emotional self-regulation allows a person to achieve leadership from anywhere in his organization, leading more from his presence rather than his position. It becomes clear that only a high IQ is not enough for great leadership.

Leadership –IQ and EQ at their Best

According to psychologists and scientists, IQ alone does not guarantee success at the work place.[1] If a person wants to do well within their work environment, climb the professional and social ladder, he needs more than cognitive and technical intelligence. He needs to demonstrate good leadership skills by being self aware, self regulating, motivated, empathetic, and possess great social skills.[2] He needs need to inspire and drive those around him.

The sum of these abilities is known in psychology as Emotional Intelligence, or EQ. Still a youthful field of study surrounding the human brain, EQ is an important area of the Neuroleadership branch focusing on leadership and leadership development.[3]  The EQ concept argues that IQ, or conventional intelligence alone is too narrow to be dictating by itself our success in life. Psychologists such as Daniel Goleman – one of the fathers of the EQ concept – advocate that greater presence of Emotional Intelligence dictates and enables our level of success.