The father of “Emotional Intelligence”, Daniel Goleman, returns to talk about business management in the light of the global context transformed by the pandemic.
Goleman defines EQ as “the ability to recognise one’s own emotions and those of others, to manage one’s own, and to interact constructively with others”.
Goleman recently took part in an event that discussed the role of Emotional Intelligence in the current context, transformed by the pandemic.
“Emotional intelligence is more important today than ever – says Goleman – We are facing a new reality, in which relationships play a leading role, transforming the way we interact. Studies show that the higher our emotional intelligence, the better our response to stressful situations. In addition, EI improves our mood and allows us to achieve greater satisfaction on both a personal and a professional level”.
Daniel Goleman, an American psychologist, writer and journalist, is also one of the best-known authors on strategic management: his concept of emotional intelligence (Emotional Intelligence) has greatly influenced theories of corporate leadership.
His fame is linked to a concept that is much discussed today, namely the importance of soft skills at work.
Goleman was the first to systematise and translate into best practice a simple concept, namely that to be a successful leader, excellent technical skills are not enough, and neither is a very high intelligence quotient (IQ). What is needed is the right balance between the irrational and the emotional component, known precisely as Emotional Intelligence.
Emotional Intelligence represents the right combination of knowing and controlling oneself and of understanding and engaging others, which is innate but can in part be improved and optimised.
Can emotional intelligence be learned?
According to Goleman, if a leader has shortcomings in managing their own emotions or is not empathetic, they can certainly improve.
This certainly requires a degree of commitment and predisposition because, in fact, the path is very introspective and requires the leader to make good use of advice and suggestions on how they are perceived from the outside and on what their real strengths and weaknesses are.
Another interesting point of Goleman’s talk on leadership is the concept of FLOW. In fact, according to the American scholar
“The art of leadership consists in bringing people to, and keeping them at, the highest levels of performance, and this happens when people are in the best state of personal well-being. It is an optimal state called Flow, in which the person is amazed at the results they achieve”.
But how can such a situation be created?
One aid in creating a scenario suited to Flow, Goleman continues, is the “social brain”. It is a discovery made about ten years ago, when researchers began to study the interaction between brains, as well as the individual brain.
There is an area of the brain that tries to understand what is happening in the other person’s brain and establishes with it a form of communication that goes beyond verbal communication.
In short, the leader must use the “social brain” to get the best out of people. “This is how you will get the best return on investment from the salaries your company pays your team. Managing people’s ‘emotional state’ is extremely important, from top management to the front end, that is, the points of contact between the company and the market. Anyone in the company who acts as the interface with customers, in fact, has the power to ‘make the customer feel good’. And if the customer ‘feels good’, they are well disposed not only towards the person acting as the interface: they are well disposed towards your company”.
