Emotional Intelligence (EQ)

Emotional Intelligence and the Heart Take Their Rightful Place Beside IQ and the Brain

Compelling evidence recently has surfaced, leading scientists to believe that Einstein's superior intellectual ability may have been related to the region of his brain that supports psychological functions. In other words, according to Newsweek science reporter Steven Levy, "When it comes to appreciating the most famous brain of our century, it ain't the meat - it's the emotion."

This new evidence is no surprise to those behind the latest rage in corporate competence - the idea of emotional intelligence (EQ) as a counterpart to intelligence quotient (IQ). Nor is the concept of EQ totally new to successful global communicators, many of whom have refined their emotional and communication competencies to a fine art.

What's new is the recent identification of these skills under the singular phrase "emotional intelligence," with an accompanying scientifically based, systematized approach to personal development that's rapidly attracting attention within corporate and organizational settings today.

Research shows that emotional intelligence may actually be significantly more important than cognitive ability and technical expertise combined. In fact, some studies indicate that EQ is more than twice as important as standard IQ abilities. Further, evidence increasingly shows that the higher one goes in an organization, the more important EQ can be. For those in leadership positions, emotional intelligence skills account for close to 90 percent of what distinguishes outstanding leaders from those judged as average.

Understanding Emotional Intelligence

Physicians and business management experts are now reporting that the theory of emotional intelligence answers questions they've never been able to answer before.

Once referred to as personality, "soft skills," character, or even communication skills, the scientifically based concept of emotional intelligence offers a more precise understanding of a specific kind of human talent.

"Emotional intelligence refers to the capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions well in ourselves and in our relationships," says Daniel Goleman in his book "Working with Emotional Intelligence" (1999). It describes abilities distinct from, but complementary to, academic intelligence - the purely cognitive capacities measured by IQ.

Bruce Cryer, vice president, global business development, for Boulder Creek, California-based HeartMath, and co-author of "From Chaos to Coherence: Advancing Emotional and Organizational Intelligence Through Inner Quality Management" (1998), takes Goleman's ideas one step further. He adds, "From proven biological models, we now know that emotional intelligence is not just a new twist on relaxation techniques, it's about genuinely increasing the internal coherence and balance of a person. No longer is there any doubt that our emotional states affect our brain and its ability to process information."

For communicators open to thinking outside the box, the idea of developing one's emotional intelligence may not be far-fetched. Indeed, for those juggling the complexities and urgencies of effective communication within an increasingly demanding global marketplace, even a small increase in human proficiency and emotional management could provide welcome relief.

"Emotion informs everything we do," explains Kate Cannon, president of Minneapolis-based Kate Cannon and Associates, Inc., and developer of the American Express Financial Advisors program featured in Goleman's book "Working with Emotional Intelligence." "Emotional intelligence is helping us truly understand what effective leadership is and how people develop it; why we've not gotten the expected results from change work in organizations; and why really smart people do really dumb things that end up derailing their careers."

Uncovering the Origins of Emotional Intelligence

What is known about emotional intelligence today is grounded primarily in psychobiology and modern neuroscience. One of the first to point out the distinction between intellectual and emotional capacities was a Harvard psychologist named Howard Gardner, who introduced his theory of "multiple intelligences" back in 1983. His research identified seven kinds of intelligence - including math and verbal abilities - as well as two personal varieties he called "knowing one's inner world" and "social adeptness."

"Emotional intelligence," as it is referred to today, was formally conceptualized in 1990 by Jack Mayer, Ph.D. - now a psychology professor at the University of New Hampshire - and Peter Salovey, Ph.D., a psychologist at Yale. But it wasn't until Daniel Goleman's first book, "Emotional Intelligence" - and his expanded perspective on EQ competencies and capacities in his second book, "Working with Emotional Intelligence" (1998) - that emotional intelligence theory was actively applied to the mainstream business world.