The Top Ways that You Can Put Emotional Intelligence to Work and Top 5 Ways to Boost Your Emotional Intelligence

When it comes to workplace happiness, most people get in their own way. The biggest obstacle that many people face with workplace happiness is low emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence is your ability to identify and manage your emotions, as well as those of other people. How you manage your feelings at work can make all the difference in your career. Here are some of the top ways that you can put emotional intelligence to work.

Practice Deep and Focused Listening

When you are communicating with other employees, you always want to practice deep and focused listening. When the other person is speaking, avoid rehearsing your response. Instead, make it a point to focus your mind and attention on asking clarifying questions to help you better understand what the person is saying. At the end of the conversation, make sure that you summarize and provide feedback on what you think you heard the individual say. Then ask if your summary is an accurate portrayal of the conversation.

Start Paying Attention to Body Language

When you’re at work, start noticing the body language or nonverbal communications of those around you. Pay attention and learn to recognize when body language isn’t consistent with the words that are being spoken. Start getting used to interpreting body language as a way to understand the complete communication of your colleagues and employees. With practice, you will get better at recognizing nonverbal signs.

Avoid Blaming Others

When you always blame others for your misfortunes, you will never be successful in your personal or professional life. When you get caught up in useless behaviors and emotions, you end up losing precious time and perspective that could help you create a more enjoyable work experience. If you fill your workday with blame and venting, you are only setting yourself up for even more disappointment and dissatisfaction.

Check Your Attitude

You can increase your emotional intelligence and make your workplace more enjoyable if you check your attitude. If you go to work with a sour mood, or always see everyone else as wrong, you are the one that will ultimately lose out. Your attitude is a matter of perspective, and your perspective matters. If you try telling the story from someone else’s eyes, you’ll be able to start seeing different ways that you can change your plan and increase your emotional intelligence at work.

If you find yourself unhappy with your current job, you may need to work on your emotional intelligence. Utilize these simple ways for putting your emotional intelligence to work for you and start enjoying all the opportunities that begin to present themselves.

Boost Your Emotional Intelligence

If you want to succeed in both your professional and personal life, there is a broad range of skills that you need to develop. While your vision and fresh and creative ideas are critical aspects of success, expanding research shows that emotional intelligence is an incredibly important skill for effective leadership and success. Here are the top five ways you can boost your emotional intelligence and find success.

Increase Your Self-Awareness

Great leaders make themselves and their personal improvement a lifelong project. They actively seek out people who will tell them the truth about how they come across to others and areas where they can make improvements. They look for organizations that will accommodate them or spend money on a coach who will provide them with honest feedback. Great leaders recognize that they are a work in progress and are always looking for ways to improve.

Develop Your Listening Skills

Good leaders are always aware of how essential listening skills are for success. They recognize that everyone has the desire to be heard. Not only do you receive more crucial information when you develop your listening skills, but you are better able to connect with others by picking up meanings and messages through nonverbal cues.

Show a Genuine Interest in Others

Not only do emotionally intelligent people learn the names of everyone that works at their company, but they also make it a point to find out as much about others as possible. They strive to find out what matters to them, whether it is their family, special interests, or hobbies. Showing a personal interest in those around you show others that they are valued as people, rather than just cogs in the machine.

Develop Your Ability to Manage Emotions

Developing your ability to manage not only yours but other’s emotions is an important skill to have. Leaders that possess high emotional intelligence can process information and respond only after they’ve thought about the situation. Emotionally intelligent people can pick up the underlying feelings behind the words spoken.

Develop a Strong Sense of Appreciation

Great leaders, with high emotional intelligence, are always appreciative and aware that they have others to thank for them to where they are. One way you can develop more gratitude is to keep a gratitude journal and write down three things you are grateful for every day, to help them maintain a positive attitude and their motivation high throughout the day.

High emotional intelligence is an essential aspect of success. Incorporate these five tips into your life to help you boost your emotional intelligence.