How to excel in the workplace with high emotional intelligence

High emotional intelligence in the workplace often leads to success and career advancement. Find out now how you can use and improve yours when working remotely:

How would you do yours? emotional intelligence assess at work?

Not quite sure what that means or how you view yourself?

Then you are exactly right here.

Emotional intelligence is a trending topic for remote teams and one of the most sought-after skills for recruiters and hiring teams. In fact, nearly 75% of HR managers rate an employee's emotional intelligence higher than their intelligence quotient (IQ).

And why? Because current research shows:

• Emotional intelligence can predict a person's success 4x better than their IQ.
• High emotional intelligence (EI) often correlates with stronger interpersonal skills, leadership skills, and stress management. It also contributes positively to job satisfaction.
• Managers with excellent emotional intelligence exceed annual sales goals by up to 20%.
• 90% of a company’s top performers have high EI scores. That means they earn, on average, $29,000 more than employees with low emotional intelligence.

Now you understand why EI is so important. The bad news? Emotional intelligence can be more challenging, but is just as important to your career when you work remotely.

So in today's guide we will discuss how emotional intelligence works Workplace looks like, when and how to use it and how to improve it. Let's start with the basics:

What is emotional intelligence?

Emotional intelligence is defined as the ability to recognize and manage one's own emotions and to recognize the emotions of others.

According to Psychology Today, American psychologists Peter Salovey and John D. Mayer introduced the concept of emotional intelligence or emotional quotient (EQ) in the 1990s[*].

Then Daniel Goleman, another psychologist, published the book that brought it to the attention of the public: Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ.

The founders say there are five key elements of emotional intelligence:

1. Self-awareness

Self-awareness means recognizing the feelings you feel and understanding where they come from. It's about recognizing the cause-and-effect relationship between your feelings and the impact on your thoughts and actions and on others.

2. Self-regulation

Self-regulation is the ability to control your emotions. Once you recognize them correctly (self-awareness), it's not about hiding your feelings, but rather learning when it's best to express or respond to them in an appropriate way.

3. Motivation

Motivation is defined as the reason why one behaves in a certain way. People with high emotional intelligence do not let their feelings dictate their actions. Instead, they seek to understand their emotions so that they can better complete tasks, resolve obstacles, and achieve their goals.

4. Empathy

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Empathy is the ability to understand the emotions of others and change one's own behavior based on these perceptions. Empathy is a characteristic of emotional intelligence. It helps people hear and understand each other, making it easier to find the best support, mood or tone for the situation.

5. Social skills

Social skills include the ability to interact with others. These include active listening, verbal and non-verbal communication skills and leadership skills.

Interpersonal skills help you build relationships with your colleagues and managers, establish relationships with customers, and maintain those relationships. People who do well in this area make friends easily because others feel comfortable, heard, and understood around them.

So why do we need emotional intelligence in the workplace?

Now that you know what emotional intelligence is, it probably doesn't surprise you that companies want employees with high emotional intelligence on their teams.

High emotional intelligence increases an employee's chances of:

• Make better decisions
• Solve problems faster
• Deal with unexpected problems and stress
• Coping with and adapting to constant change
• Reduce tensions and resolve conflicts
• Respond well to constructive criticism
• Communicate effectively and accept others' ideas
• Building and maintaining cooperative relationships with colleagues and managers

You would probably admire and enjoy working with anyone with these skills. People with high emotional intelligence do this Remote workplace to a better, more productive location - and sometimes all it takes is a well-timed check-in with a thoughtful emoji to achieve this.

Unfortunately, science has not yet given us a clear method for measuring emotional intelligence. And what is difficult to measure is usually even harder to improve.

Employees who lack emotional intelligence are often:

• avoid taking responsibility for poor decisions, mistakes and mistakes
  play the role of the victim
• use passive-aggressive behavior
• have difficulty collaborating and being a team player
• excessively criticize managers and colleagues and reject other opinions
• not communicating effectively and taking every misunderstanding as a personal insult

People who fall into the low intelligence category can create a toxic work environment for everyone else on the team. Don't be that person.

How to build or improve your emotional intelligence for work

Although psychologists disagree about whether emotional intelligence is something you are born with or something you have to learn, they agree that EI can be cultivated and improved through practice.

Researchers even found in one study that participants who trained key aspects of emotional intelligence achieved lasting improvements in their physical and mental health, social relationships, and stress levels.

So let's go back to the five characteristics of EI that we mentioned earlier. Each skill describes how you perceive, understand and control your emotions.

You may be great at one of these skills and poor at another. So start with a self-assessment to identify the areas you want to expand or improve first. Then use these tips:

How to improve your self-awareness when working remotely

To be confident, you need to learn to correctly recognize your emotions, understand where they come from, and control your reactions. Try some of the following ideas to make this process easier:

Start naming your emotions throughout the day. Check into your head every now and then to become more familiar with your changing emotional states. Identify subtle, positive feelings as well as loud, negative ones. Being able to identify your emotions in the moment is the first step to tackling the next steps.

Assess your emotional strengths and weaknesses. How well do you communicate with those around you? Are you often impatient or annoyed with your boss? When you identify the areas in which you can improve, you will be able to find solutions to achieve this goal.

Create a healthy routine before work. Do whatever puts you in a productive, optimistic mood to start your work day on the right foot. Meditation, journaling, and exercise are excellent ideas to consider when creating your personal schedule.

Remember that emotions don't last forever. You may be upset when your boss throws a last-minute project at you on Friday afternoon, but don't quit your job without a plan.

Serious decisions require a healthy, clear mind, and strong emotions usually change this state. Whenever your emotions are high, catch yourself and take a break until they calm down.

In this way, self-regulation becomes a matter of course

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Practice makes perfect. Just because you can recognize emotions doesn't mean you know how to deal with them. Bottling them can cause an unexpected breakout later. But sending a nasty email when you receive harsh criticism isn't the solution either.

Learn to shift gears. Self-regulation can reduce the impact of intense emotions on you. Then it will be easier to deal with them. So whenever you perceive a negative situation, take a step back to lighten the mood. Focus on the positive, go for a walk with your anxious energy, or clear your head with your favorite playlist.

Address the stress Workplace in contrast to. It's harder to stay calm and collected when you're on the verge of burnout. So find healthy ways to ease workplace tensions and prevent yourself from reaching your limits.

Yoga, meditation, regular exercise, time with loved ones, and hobbies or interests you enjoy can give you something to look forward to and help regulate your emotions.

Increase motivation in the workplace

People with high emotional intelligence are motivated by intrinsic rewards, such as: B. through the feeling of fulfillment when you find a creative solution to an annoying obstacle.

Unlike external rewards (like money or praise), intrinsic motivation makes workplace performance more fulfilling. You will face new challenges with greater enthusiasm. And that enthusiasm usually spreads like wildfire.

To increase motivation:

Set SMART goals. Achieving gold stars starts with setting goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. These parameters will help you work toward goals that you can actually achieve (rather than unrealistic goals that you've stressed out). Every time you achieve a goal, you will be motivated to tackle the next one.

Focus on the best aspects of your work. When you feel frustrated or uninspired, think about what you love most about your work. Think about the rush you feel when you complete a big project or receive great feedback from a client. Put these things on your mental vision board and find your way to them.

Stay optimistic. Try to avoid the immediate worst-case scenario when strong emotions run high. Think of all the things that could go right. Stay positive and this will inspire and motivate others too.

Improve empathy towards remote work colleagues

When you are able to put yourself in another person's shoes, you can understand how they are feeling and what they need. This can shed light on the dynamic between your colleagues and managers.

However, this is difficult when you communicate remotely rather than in person (and even more difficult when you work with people from different countries and cultures). So try this:

Strive for a genuine connection. Go beyond the simple Slack DM and try to get to know your employees on a deeper level. Find out what they are interested in outside of work, what they are really good at, and how they approach their tasks.

Their personality, goals, and their country's work culture can provide context for their actions and provide a better understanding of how they contribute to the team.

Try a new perspective. It can be difficult to consider another person's perspective, especially if your beliefs are completely opposite to theirs. But if you see where the other person is coming from, you can find a middle ground between their ideas and yours.

Give every voice a chance. Before you veto any idea that isn't yours, recognize that every contribution has its merits. Encourage your team to bounce off even imperfect ideas, which can then lead to iterations that really work.

Become a praise fairy. Regularly praise your employees for a job well done. Make them feel seen, valued and respected and others will follow your example.

Improving your social skills

Excellent interpersonal skills help field employees communicate more effectively and collaborate better. You can use these non-cheesy team building ideas to improve your team. How to improve your social skills:

Practice active listening. Really pay attention to what people say, how they say it, and even what emojis they use in their messages. Ask questions and provide relevant feedback. Don't just nod or wait for them to stop talking.

This shows that you are interested in what they have to say and the project you are working on.

Learn to read non-verbal communication. During your virtual meetings, pay attention to facial expressions, body language, and subconscious signals that people use to communicate their feelings and emotions.

For example, if someone is feeling uncomfortable, you wouldn't pepper them with a ton of questions. If everyone rolls their eyes when someone speaks, you may need to ask specific team members for their ideas.

Watch a few videos about body language and nonverbal communication on YouTube and you'll be a pro at it.

Stay out of the office drama, but offer to help resolve conflicts. Use your empathy, listen to both sides and try to find a compromise that will move your team forward and create a positive atmosphere.

Practice your social skills by finding a community when working remotely and engaging there often.

Emotional intelligence can be your competitive advantage when searching for a remote job

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Over 40% of companies say emotional intelligence is one of the most important skills they look for in new employees[*]. Now that you know how to use emotional intelligence at work and why it's important, it's time to create a plan to improve your emotional intelligence.

Increase your emotional intelligence and you will not only improve your well-being, but also become invaluable to any remote team. Add the skills featured today to yours CV Add it and you'll stand out to employers and get organizations to apply for an interview.