EQ or emotional intelligence (aka people skills) is more important than IQ in determining leadership success. Sound far fetched that people skills are more important than intelligence as a leadership differentiator?
What does a leader do at a high level? Sets a course of action and leads an organization to follow to make that vision a reality. Yes, it does take intelligence to analyze and decide on a course of action, but inducing an organization to follow takes people skills. The leader has to motivate, guide, and inspire people. If a leader has the most brilliant solution in the world but can't get anyone to follow, he/she has failed. In order to move others, a leader needs to understand people. And people are driven by emotions.
So what is emotional intelligence? Psychologist Daniel Goleman breaks it into five capabilities:
Daniel Goleman argues that intelligence (IQ) and technical skills are threshold capabilities. That is to say that they are required to be in the race for leadership, but that EQ is the differentiator.
In their book, “Why CEOs Fail: The 11 Behaviors That Can Derail Your Climb To The Top And How To Manage Them, “ David Dotlich, and Peter Cairo describe the most common characteristics of derailed top executives. Some of them are listed below:
- Arrogance
- Melodrama
- Volatility
- Habitual Distrust
- Aloofness
All of these attributes suggest a lack of emotional intelligence.
The really good news about emotional intelligence is that unlike IQ, emotional intelligence can be developed. All of us have the capability to increase our level of emotional intelligence. A great way to get started is to check out the five resources below:
What’s Your EQ? A quiz to help you quickly assess your level of emotional intelligence from about.com Psychology http://psychology.about.com/library/quiz/bl_eq_quiz.htm
Are You Emotionally Intelligent? Here’s How to Know for Sure by Travis Bradberry. If you do not want to do a quiz, reading this article can give you a sense of whether you might have a high level of emotional intelligence. The list provided can help improve your skills, an idea as to where we might get started. http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/242881 He has also written a book: Emotional Intelligence 2.0 that give practical strategies for improving four of the five competencies.
The Use of Emotional Intelligence for Effective Leadership by Brent Gleeson, a former Navy SEAL and entrepreneur talks about how emotional intelligence is important, giving examples from his experience. http://www.forbes.com/sites/brentgleeson/2014/12/29/the-use-of-emotional-intelligence-for-effective-leadership/
Are You Emotionally Intelligent? A video from Dnews www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmz9Yb9dWck a video explaining the five capabilities listed above.
What Makes a Great Leader? by Daniel Goleman hbr.org/2004/01/what-makes-a-leader which explores emotional intelligence and leadership.
QUESTION: What are your favorite EQ resources?======================================================================
Leadership/Career Coach Kris Ishibashi works with leaders to bring together their skills, their authentic selves, and their intentions to inspire their organizations to superior performance. Click here to set up a complimentary consultation.
