What is Emotional Intelligence?

Start here Imagine a world with no emotions. No anger, no joy, no fear. We would be like robots. No movies, no web series, no drama — no fun at all! Emotions make us human. This week is about understanding and handling them.

• What emotional intelligence is, and its benefits at home and at work
• The 6R framework to build emotional resilience
• How emotional intelligence helps in managing conflict and making customers happy
• Different types of conflict and conflict management techniques

• Emotions are energy. They are normal — nothing is wrong with having them.
• Humans are the only beings who can think and feel, and also understand what they think and feel.
• Emotions are a response to stimuli (things that happen to us). They carry a message: they tell you what you are really feeling.
• There are no good or bad emotions. Every emotion has its place and value.

“Emotional intelligence is not the opposite of intelligence; it is not the triumph of heart over head — it is the unique intersection of both.” (quote shared in the lecture)

In one line: Emotions are normal messages from inside us — none of them is “good” or “bad”. Exam words: emotions, stimuli, response, no good or bad emotions.

Emotional intelligence (EI) means recognising, understanding and managing your own emotions and the emotions of others.

It is about how you respond to things happening inside you and around you. Your response creates emotions. Those emotions affect your thoughts, words, actions, behaviour and body language.

In one line: EI is recognising, understanding and managing emotions — yours and others’. Exam words: emotional intelligence, recognise, understand, manage, self and others.

Being aware of emotions, understanding them and managing them helps you:

• increase self-awareness
• show empathy towards others
• communicate and listen well
• handle difficult situations and difficult people
• solve problems, make better decisions and resolve conflict

Benefits for you:

• A healthy, strong relationship with yourself — you no longer wear masks to hide your real self.
• Better relationships with others.
• Happiness and true freedom — you drop the heavy emotional baggage from the past.
• Good health and well-being.

Benefits at work:

• stronger leadership
• better stress management
• healthy relationships with colleagues
• higher productivity and performance
• greater job satisfaction

A high EQ (emotional quotient) is an asset. When companies hire, EQ often trumps IQ.

In one line: EI makes you calmer, better with people and more valuable at work — EQ often matters more than IQ. Exam words: self-awareness, empathy, emotional baggage, EQ, EQ trumps IQ.

“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” — Viktor E. Frankl

Something happens (the stimulus). Before you react, there is a small space. In that space, you choose how to respond. How you respond is within your control.

Everyday example A classmate makes fun of your answer in class (stimulus). You feel hurt. In that small space, you can shout back — or smile, stay calm, and talk to him later. The choice is yours.

In one line: You can’t always control what happens, but you can choose how you respond. Exam words: stimulus, response, space, power to choose, Viktor Frankl.