Improving the 5 Key Skills of Emotional Intelligence in Leaders

April 1, 2022

Male leader standing next to 3 sitting employees

What separates a good leader from a great one? It is tempting to think that it is something like cognitive abilities or personality traits – maybe good leaders are more assertive or have exceptional problem-solving skills. But recent research suggests that the answer is Emotional Intelligence (EI), or the ability to understand and recognize emotions in oneself and others, as well as the ability to manage one’s emotions. In fact, EI is the strongest predictor of job performance and can explain almost 60% of success in all types of jobs.

This isn’t surprising, given that leaders with high EI can accomplish amazing feats that leave those with low EI lost in their dust. For instance, leaders with high EI can raise revenue margins, increase employee retention, engagement, and innovation, and decrease turnover. These leaders rely on their superior EI to effectively coach team members, create a psychologically safe workplace, make difficult decisions using objective, critical thinking, and they easily resolve conflicts. They can remain calm in times of stress, maintaining clear communication to the team, and they can stay positive and motivate the team despite challenges.

A Key Leadership Quality

What makes EI especially important as a leadership quality today is that just about everyone is facing extra stress right now as the world emerges out of the pandemic. Nearly half of us are reporting a decline in mental health, mostly from anxiety and depression. We are finding our ‘new normal’ yet again as some return to the office while others maintain a hybrid or remote arrangement. A great leader can create a feeling of safety and value among all this chaos and serve to buffer any impacts of stress.

The best news is that EI is a skill that can be developed with practice, and arguably, can always be improved upon, even in someone who believes they have great EI. With more practice, these skills will become more natural as the brain creates new neural pathways. Here are 5 key EI skills and ways to improve each:

Self-awareness = The foundation of EI because it allows leaders to recognize their own emotions, how their emotions impact the team, as well as their strengths and weaknesses as a leader. It is a pre-requisite for self-regulation.

To Improve Self-Awareness:

Reflect on own emotions as they occur in real time
Complete emotional exercises to understand own emotions better (for example, imagine a situation that triggers joy, sadness, anger, surprise, etc…)
Keep a journal to clarify thinking and learn about yourself
Invite feedback from others

Self-Regulation = When leaders stay focused on goals regardless of external feedback, setbacks, or problems. They’re driven by internal factors, like reaching goals, rather than external factors like making money.

To Improve Self-Regulation:

Pause before reacting emotionally to move forward consciously after calming down
Learn techniques to change your mood (for example, mindfulness, learn breathing, meditation, stay positive, use positive self-talk, etc…)

Empathy = The ability for a leader to recognize and understand how a team member is feeling and imagine the situation from their point of view.

To Improve Empathy:

Learn more about employees on a personal level to mirror what they’re feeling (for example, their goals, challenges, what motivates them, etc…)
Acknowledge feelings in a message and not just content
Become more self-aware to better understand feelings of others
Listen and learn to communicate through both verbal and non-verbal cues
Imagine what a situation is like from another’s point of view (for example, an employee asked to do overtime)

Motivation = When leaders stay focused on goals regardless of external feedback, setbacks, or problems. They’re driven by internal factors, like reaching goals, rather than external factors like making money.

To Improve Motivation:

Stay positive and optimistic in stressful situations
Remain engaged by re-evaluating how your job connects to your values and interests
Create goals and subgoals and celebrate each achievement

Social Skills = When leaders understand how team members think and feel and how that influences the entire team, including the ability to communicate ideas, read the room, nurture trust, and build strong relationships.

To Improve Social Skills

Learn active listening skills and cultivate verbal and non-verbal communication
Focus on building relationships between team members, collaboration, mentoring, and motivating team in desired direction
Strive to manage conflicts and discomforts by having those difficult conversations with tact and respect
Listen to feedback and be willing to improve
Take responsibility and stay accountable for actions to show secure leadership