Emotional intelligence (EI) is gaining more appeal, especially with globalization, the rise of cross-cultural, teams, and the growing complexities of interactions in the workplace. Emotional intelligence skills are the key to building strong working relationships given that emotionally charged decisions have to be made in an organization on a daily basis. Emotional Intelligence skills include self-regulation, self-awareness, social skills, motivation, and empathy according to Foster & McKenzie (2018). When embraced effectively, these skills improve professional relationships by increasing collaboration and creating a happier workplace. This discussion outlines the ways in which I can incorporate the EI skills to improve the relationship with my departmental manager and how to enhance my communication with him.
Self-awareness involves identifying your emotions and emotional triggers. Being aware of my feelings allows me to understand how my immediate departmental manager could perceive my emotions. I predominantly use self-awareness in the workplace to understand how I am viewed by my manager. Self-regulation involves adjusting and controlling your motions to create a positive environment (Foster & McKenzie, 2018). Given that your emotions affect those around you, it is important to be in full control of your feelings. I often control my emotions in the workplace by adjusting my feelings to maintain a professional appearance in front of my manager and other colleagues. In addition, being in control of my emotions helps me to make decisions easily and to complete the assigned duties with a lot of ease.
Motivation is an important EI skill that involves having the desire and urge to do something. The urge to fulfill organizational goals and your own goals is perceived as a greater motivation. For example, I always complete duties and responsibilities assigned to me, which is portrayed as intrinsic motivation to my departmental manager. Empathy is another key EI skill that has to do with understanding the feelings of other people (Sinha, 2018). This skill allows me to effectively handle even the most difficult situations in the workplace. For instance, when a colleague or my manager shows signs of dismay, I often react with empathy to neutralize a situation that would otherwise have escalated. I use social skills specifically to enhance my communication with my departmental manager. For example, having strong social skills to effectively speak, listen, and resolve differences when dealing with my immediate boss. The social skills not only help me to effectively communicate but also to develop my career as a great communicator.
Overall, Emotional Intelligence skills are important as far as improving professional relationships and enhancing communication with your colleges and seniors in the workplace are concerned. Besides helping me to effectively reason with others, I use emotional intelligence skills to perceive, understand, and handle my emotions as well as those of others in the workplace. Being able to manage my emotions allows me to show respect to my seniors, guide others, create a happier environment and become successful in the workplace. Further to this, displaying a high level of emotional intelligence such as explicit motivation, responsibility, and empathy motivates the people around me to follow my steps.
References
Foster, K., & McKenzie, H. (2018). Educational approaches and activities to enhance emotional intelligence. In Emotional intelligence in health and social care (pp. 127-145). Routledge.
Sinha, V. (2018). Role of Emotional Intelligence in Managing Interpersonal Relations at Workplace in the IT Sector. International Journal of Human Capital and Information Technology Professionals (IJHCITP), 9(4), 72-87.
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