7 Ways to Improve Your Emotional Intelligence at Work

Have you ever wondered how some people just know what to say and when to say it?

How do they manage their emotions, trust their intuition, and easily understand how others feel?

They probably have high emotional intelligence, which is just as important, if not more so, than cognitive intelligence.

When you improve your emotional intelligence, you learn to navigate the social complexities in your personal and professional lives.

It helps you with better decision-making skills, positive interactions with others, and overall success.

What is Emotional Intelligence?

Emotional intelligence is the ability to understand and manage your emotions to better handle social situations, as well as the ability to perceive and work with the emotions of others.

As a soft skill, it helps with expressing your emotions in a way that is respectful to those around you and responding with supportive and encouraging feedback.

Why is Emotional Intelligence Important?

Emotional intelligence in the workplace is important for a number of reasons. All jobs involve dealing with people. No matter what environment you are in, it is important to learn how to interact with others and understand their point of view.

In fact, researchers have found that people with high emotional intelligence have higher job satisfaction than those with lower emotional intelligence.

With high emotional intelligence, you can build stronger social connections, succeed at work, manage stress, and achieve your personal goals.

Here are some tips to improve your emotional intelligence at work.

How to Improve Your Emotional Intelligence at Work

1. Practice Self-Awareness

Being aware of your own emotions is one of the key aspects of emotional intelligence.

Pay attention to your feelings and identify what triggers them.

Notice how you react in certain situations.

Being intuitive with yourself allows you to take a step back and assess how your emotions can affect those around you.

2. Become an Active Listener

Actively listening to others instead of waiting for your chance to speak shows respect and prevents any potential misunderstandings during a conversation.

Focusing 100% of your attention on listening to someone and then nodding or clarifying the important points to show you understand them will allow people to feel valued.

3. Empathize with Others

Understanding and considering someone’s feelings is a critical component of emotional intelligence.

Put yourself in someone else’s shoes and try to understand their situation from their point of view.

This will help in providing a response that is comforting to others and will show a genuine interest in their feelings.

4. Communicate in a Clear Manner

Learn to express yourself clearly and assertively while also being open to feedback.

Emotionally intelligent individuals communicate their thoughts confidently without coming across as aggressive.

The key aspect is being mindful of your vocabulary and using words that will help communicate your thoughts in a respectful way.

5. Practice Emotional Regulation

Recognize any triggers you may have that can cause you to get angry and stressed.

Then find a strategy that will help you stay calm under pressure.

For example, if you’re under a tight deadline, tensions might get high, so taking the time to step aside and take deep breaths will allow the situation to de-escalate.

Responding instead of reacting to challenging situations can help reach a solution more effectively.

6. Maintain a Positive Mindset

If you are in a stressful situation, remember that positivity is a terrific way to stay grounded.

Staying positive will help keep others calm, and your optimistic outlook can rub off on others, which will only reinforce good energy.

Minimize negative talk whenever possible and develop strategies to maintain positive vibes, such as engaging in activities you enjoy.

7. Keep An Eye on Body Language

We often feel that the most important part of the conversation might be the words we use.

However, body language, facial expressions, and tone of voice have a key role in communication.

“Reading the room” can help with interpreting people’s emotions on a level beyond just the words they speak and can truly tell how they are really feeling.

Notice how someone will use their posture, eye contact, and facial expressions, and gauge how your own body language might reflect that to them.

Increasing Emotional Intelligence

Emotions touch every area of our personal and professional lives.

Everyone has different personality styles and achieving emotional intelligence may come more easily for some and harder for others.

However, anyone can develop these skills with effort and practice.

Give these tips a try because taking the time to invest in your personal growth will be something you will not regret.

Over to You

How are you planning to improve your emotional intelligence? Comment your thoughts on our social @netwerkmovement and let us know what’s been working. We love to hear from you!