Introduction
Emotion is the object of study in many fields of knowledge: psychology, sociology, anthropology, organizational behavior, neuroscience, etc. Although the scholars and scientists explore emotions from different perspectives, most of them agree that “emotion provides a unique source of information about the environment and that it unavoidably informs thoughts and actions” (Druskat et al., 2006, p. 27). Thus, emotions inevitably take part in the decision-making process. However, the majority of people do not perceive their emotions in this way, and in most of the cases try to avoid them in an attempt to be rational and logical. The ability to understand and comprehend one’s emotional states and signals is called the emotional intelligence. According to psychologists, emotional intelligence includes “(a) the ability to perceive, appraise, and express emotions accurately; (b) the ability to access and generate feelings when they facilitate cognition, (c) the ability to understand affect-laden information and make use of emotional knowledge; and (d) the ability to regulate emotions to promote the emotional and intellectual growth and well-being” (Druskat et al., 2006, p. 28). The outcomes of such skills are always rewarding because they cause self-development, the refinement of communicational habits, and the better learning capabilities and, thus, provoke the educational and professional improvement.
Emotional Intelligence and Working Performance
Commonly it is considered that employees must leave their emotions behind while working. However, this idea has proved to be wrong. Emotions can be regarded as the indicators of conditions in which a person stands. The negative feelings inform about a stressful situation and ignoring them prevents from finding solutions and answers and can induce the greater psychological distress. Such attitude causes the low performance in each aspect of social life. Low performance is especially undesirable in business and work.
The activities that support emotional intelligence provoke the higher productivity, and this is one of the essential factors for the profitability increase (Stein & Book, 2006, p. 62). The consideration of one’s emotions allows more commitment to work and more focus on tasks. Emotional intelligence helps to build positive relations among the team members and, therefore, enhances the organizational culture. The positive and friendly working climate motivates the staff creativity and increases the organizational innovativeness. Thus, emotional intelligence benefits both the organizational executives and subordinates. The employee’s commitment and high productivity creates the competitive advantage for business and increases progress and development. And the employee who has the abilities comprised in the emotional intelligence becomes capable of self-evolvement through unlocking his or her potentials, and consequently comes to a high level of psychological and job satisfaction.
Emotional Competence and Leadership
The well-developed personal potentials are especially important in leadership. In all cultures and all times, a leader has been regarded as “the one to whom others look for assurance and clarity when facing uncertainty or threat, or when there’s a job to be done” (Golemen et al., 2013, p. 5). For the efficient guiding of others, one needs to have a great deal of emotional composure, self-discipline, and positive and inspiring attitudes.
The effective leadership influences the emotions of the team members and directs them in the right and productive way. First of all, a leader is a person who is aware of the importance of the self-development and who is engaged in the process of learning all the time. By continuous learning, a leader transforms his professional and communication skills into personal strengths and acquires the personal integrity (Golemen et al., 2013, p. 47). The emotional integrity is crucial in addressing other people emotions. Moreover, the emotional competence plays a significant role in creation and maintenance of the organizational culture that motivates the emotional and professional development of the employees.
The stimulation of the subordinates’ competence and the achievement of the results are the principal goals of leadership. First of all, a leader is a person who inspires by his own example. Thus, development of emotional intelligence abilities is of great importance. The successful leader is the one who is perceptive, knowledgeable, and who can regulate emotions and make use of them. The leader inspires confidence in all aspects, only in this case he or she becomes able to provoke the employees’ commitment, integrate the employees’ benefits and goals with the benefits of organization, and create a right orientation to the results achievement and progress.
Conclusion
Emotional intelligence is interrelated with the person’s psychological sustainability, and it extracts advantages in the personal life and work. Emotional intelligence includes empathy, social responsibility, and the skills of building healthy interpersonal relations (Stein & Book, 2006, p. 23). The emotional competence of employees and managers benefits the organization by the creation of the positive and flexible working environment, high level of engagement in work and productivity that inevitably induce the financial and organizational profits. Emotional intelligence is bound to advance the culture of the interpersonal relationship both in the small communities and in the society at the global scale. Thus, it is recommendable for individuals and organizations not to neglect the emotions in the decision-making processes and to apply the activities that stimulate the emotional intelligence growth.
References
Druskat, V., Sala, F., & Mount, G. (2006). Linking emotional intelligence and performance at work: Current research evidence with individuals and groups. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R., & McKee, A. (2013). Primal Leadership: Unleashing the power of emotional intelligence. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Review Press.
Stein, S., & Book, H. (2006). The EQ edge: Emotional Intelligence and your success. Toronto, Canada: Jossey-Bass.
Annotated bibliography
Druskat, V., Sala, F., & Mount, G. (2006). Linking emotional intelligence and performance at work: Current research evidence with individuals and groups. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
The book comprises the multiple investigations of the emotional intelligence issues conducted by many scholars. They attempt to establish the links between the emotional intelligence and the working performance from the different perspectives to find the ways to advance the professional competence and skills. The methods include data analysis and the evaluation of the prior literature. Through the analysis, the authors prove that the high level of the emotional intelligence is significant for the efficient performance in education, business, and politics.
Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R., & McKee, A. (2013). Primal Leadership: Unleashing the power of emotional intelligence. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Review Press.
Goleman, Boyatzis, and McKee investigate the notions and issues of leadership and emotional intelligence to establish the links between them. The authors assert that emotional intelligence is the crucial ability of any leader as it includes rationalization and assists in coping challenges and helps to build sound relations with others. Goleman et al. analyze the data collected by many researchers in psychology and management studies. They come to the conclusion that emotional intelligence consists of such aspects as awareness, confidence, adaptability, etc., and that these skills effectively support the leader’s performance.
Stein, S., & Book, H. (2006). The EQ edge: Emotional Intelligence and your success. Toronto, Canada: Jossey-Bass.
Through the evaluation of the previous research, Stein and Book investigate the psychological aspects of the emotional intelligence to prove its significance in achieving success and to give some advice on how this knowledge could be implemented in the performance. The authors implement the method of comparison; they contrast the intellectual and emotional quotients (IQ and EQ) to establish their influence on the people’s capacity to be successful. The findings of the research prove that EQ level is more important in this regard and that it can help to advance the communicational and professional skills.