A leader’s emotional quotient (EQ) significantly determines leadership success in this fast-paced, interdependent world.
Technological ability and IQ are critical, but emotional intelligence often separates great leaders from the rest.
EQ includes recognizing emotions, understanding their and others’ feelings, and managing them. It is the pinnacle of effective leadership.
This article covers the information to demonstrate the role of emotional intelligence in leadership and highlights how EQ has contributed to outstanding leadership.
Self-Awareness
An understanding of oneself is the basis of emotional intelligence. Self-reflective leaders, who understand themselves well, can feel and perceive their strengths, weaknesses, and motivations on a visceral level.
One can trace this very well through Sheryl Sandberg’s leadership path. Sheryl Sandberg is currently the COO (Chief Operating Officer) of Facebook.
Sandberg is known for her openness about her battles with self-doubt and impostor syndrome, especially in her iconic book; “Lean In.”
Speaking publicly about her feelings of uncertainty and inadequacy, she manifests an excellent self-awareness that identifies with many people facing personal and professional challenges.
Connecting with Empathy
Empathy is a skill that involves showing understanding and sharing in other people’s emotions.
Empathic leaders are competent at identifying and giving importance to the feelings of their teammates, which creates an atmosphere of trust, belonging, and psychological safety.
The most striking illustration of empathetic leadership was shown by Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet Inc.
Pichai’s empathy-driven leadership became even more apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic when he prioritized employee well-being and mental health by extending the work-from-home policy and offering additional support resources.
By being in sync with his workers’ difficulties, Pichai illustrated a culture of tenderness and companionship within the company in person.
Social Skills
One of the most essential attributes of a good leader is social skills, which allow them to successfully migrate through various complex interpersonal connections, develop incredible rapport, and stimulate collaboration.
Indira Nooyi, the erstwhile CEO of PepsiCo, illustrates the marvelous case of very competent social skills in leadership.
Nooyi’s charisma and friendliness allowed her to create and develop personal relationships with employees, stakeholders, and consumers.
As a Chief Executive Officer, she charted a path to exemplary revenue growth and product innovations through her ability to encourage and lead teams with different compositions toward a shared vision.
Self-Regulation
The skill of self-regulation is the ability to manage and control energy, emotions, impulses, and behavior, especially in highly charged or pressured situations.
The example of how to behave in the leadership position presented by Nelson Mandela, the legendary anti-apartheid leader who was also the president of South Africa in the past, is the display of self-regulation.
It was an inspiration that despite spending years in prison and witnessing extreme suffering and opposition, Mandela was even-tempered and defiant in his resolve to reconciliation and nation-building.
Maintaining composure and not succumbing to the temptation of being harsh or resentful, Mandela was influential in avoiding bitterness during the transition to democracy in South Africa.
Conflict Resolution
Conflict is unavoidable and concomitant in organizations, but leaders with great emotional intelligence can reframe conflicts into opportunities that benefit the organization and encourage collaboration.
Mary Barra, CEO of General Motors (GM), created a transforming method of conflict resolution. When the ignition switch recall-related troubles swept GM, Maria Barra bravely took charge, implemented company reforms, and emphasized organization, transparency, and accountability.
By creating a way of thinking where everyone could express their views and improve from past mistakes, Barra turned GM’s challenge into a chance for the company to restore its damaged image and establish its reputation again.
Inspiring Others
Leadership that inspires is manifested through the ability to instill in people an urge to achieve the set vision or objective jointly.
Mahatma Gandhi, the beloved leader of our national independence movement, embodies a remarkable leadership experience based on emotional intelligence.
Mohandas Gandhi’s unshakable conviction about the nonviolent principle, coupled with his ability to resonate a lot with the people on an emotional side, rallied millions to join the battle.
He pointed out that truth, empathy, and selflessness should remain the guiding principles in contemporary socio-political and human rights movements.
Conclusion
Finally, emotional intelligence is one of the most critical parts of leadership, as it helps authentically connect with others, deal with complicated issues, and lead to positive change.
Such leaders are more capable than others of solving problems in the modern business world and can orchestrate change and make a difference.
Having emotional intelligence is not only desirable, but it is also a necessary set of qualifications that underlie leadership excellence and a more harmonious and compassionate society.
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