 In this lesson, we are going to discuss emotional intelligence. By the end of this lesson, you will be able to define emotional intelligence, describe the principles of emotional intelligence, and utilize emotional intelligence in an interaction. Let's start off and discuss what is emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to identify and manage your own emotions as well as the emotions of others. It is generally said to include a few skills, namely emotional awareness. Emotional awareness is the ability to identify and name one's emotions and the ability to harness those emotions and apply them to tasks like thinking and problem solving. When you have the ability to manage your own emotions and to regulate your own emotions, you will then be able to help others do the same. There are some common principles or characteristics of emotional intelligence. The first one is self-awareness. People with high self-awareness are aware of their moods as they are having them. The second one is self-regulation. When you are aware of your moods, self-regulation allows you to stay in control to manage your emotions effectively. The third one is motivation. Self-motivation is strongly impacted by your emotions. When you're distracted or ruled by your emotions, you may find it hard to see tasks through. The fourth is empathy. Empathy is the ability to recognize other people's emotions and understand their perspectives. Some people call this the fundamental people skill. The fifth one is social skills. Even if you're not a natural people person, it is possible to develop better social skills. This allows you to develop trust and rapport with people. We'll talk a little bit later about some specific things you can do to help develop better social skills. Now we're going to go in and discuss the qualities of an emotionally intelligent person a little bit more in depth. In this slide, we'll discuss self-awareness, social awareness, self-management and relationship management and how these qualities relate to emotional intelligence. So the emotionally intelligent are highly conscious of their emotional states, even the negative ones. They are able to identify and understand what they are feeling and being able to name an emotion helps you manage that emotion. So because of this, the emotionally intelligent have high self-confidence and are realistic about themselves. These individuals are not impulsive or hasty with their actions. They think before they act. This translates into steady emotion regulation, which is the ability to reduce how intense an emotion feels. So taking anger or anxiety down a notch is called down regulation. So the emotionally intelligent are able to shift gears and lighten the mood, both internally and externally. So these individuals are especially tuned into the emotions of others. It's understandable that sensitivity to emotional signals, both from within yourself and from your environment, could make you a better friend, parent, son or daughter, employee. Being in tune with others is less work for others. So this person is able to recognize and understand the emotions of others, which is a skill tied to empathy. The person with a high emotional intelligence can hear and understand another person's point of view clearly. The empathetic are generally supportive of the people in their lives and they easily modulate their emotions to match the mood of another person as well. We all know people who are in full control of their emotions. They are calm in a crisis. They make decisions sensitively, however stressful the situation. We also know people who can read the emotions of others. They understand what to say to make people feel better and they know how to inspire them to take action. People like this have high emotional intelligence. They have strong relationships and they manage difficult situations calmly and effectively. They are also more likely to be resilient in the face of adversity. So take a second and review this video, developing emotional intelligence. Simply click on the link and watch this short video. So now that we know what emotional intelligence is and the qualities or characteristics of emotional intelligence, let's discuss how we can develop emotional intelligence ourselves. So to increase self-awareness, try learning about mindfulness. This involves focusing on the present moment, including how you're feeling. You could try keeping a journal. You could write about and analyze the emotional situations you experience from day to day. You also need to understand your strengths and weaknesses to build self-awareness. So take some time and do some self-reflection. Ask for feedback from your boss, your friends, your colleagues to find out about how you can improve further. You also want to learn self-regulation. This is how to learn how to manage your emotions effectively. So if you find that you often get angry, know what triggers this feeling and then think about why this happens. Try using techniques like deep breathing to calm yourself down. This gives yourself time to pause before you respond to things like a conversation, emails or texts or requests, so that you don't say something that you'll regret later. You also might be impacted by other negative feelings and emotions, such as anxiety and stress. So do what you can to manage these feelings effectively. Accountability is another important element of self-regulation. So take responsibility for your actions and behaviors and make sure that these align with your values. Now we've discussed the importance of motivation earlier in this lesson. Self-motivation is strongly impacted by your motivations. When you're distracted by your emotions, you might find it hard to see tasks through. So boost your motivation levels by developing self-discipline. Look for and celebrate the small wins, those simple jobs that when you've completed them, you have a sense of achievement. Set both short and long-term goals. When you decide what you want to achieve, you'll focus on what really matters to you. Now this can be highly motivating, especially when you connect personal goals with your career-related ones. If you're still struggling to get motivated, take some time and rediscover your purpose. Now empathy, again, is the ability to recognize other people's emotions and understand their perspectives. To develop empathy, start by simply thinking about another person's viewpoints. Learn about other values and cultural beliefs. Imagine how someone might be feeling and use active listening skills to understand them. Look at the nonverbal communication. Look at their body language. It can tell you a lot about their emotions. Pause before interrupting or talking about your own feelings during a conversation. If you watch and listen to others, you'll quickly become attuned to how they feel. Developing social skills can be difficult if you don't feel like you're a people person or maybe you tend to be an introvert. It is possible to develop better social skills, though. One way you can do this is start by taking a quiz. This identifies which communication skills you need to improve upon. Once you have an understanding of this, you can work on developing these skills. Once you improve these social skills, you can then develop trust and rapport with people. This is an essential part of building good working relationships. You also want to consider not shying away from negative situations or conflict. So learn how to develop conflict resolution skills and how to interact with others in a difficult situation. If you're uncomfortable with social skills, work on building self-confidence. Start slowly, but then look for opportunities to practice your skills with friends, families, or bigger groups. Practice will allow you to increase your confidence in your social skills. Now you are going to have the opportunity to test your own emotional intelligence. Navigate to the link listed on this slide. Evaluate each statement. You want to review each statement as you are right now, not how you would like to be in the future. Then click Calculate My Total and review your score and feedback on how you can improve your own emotional intelligence. So let's summarize what we've discussed so far this lesson. Developing high emotional intelligence is incredibly important for a successful career. When you have high levels of emotional intelligence, you are able to build strong working relationships and manage difficult situations more effectively. Now there are five principles of emotional intelligence, self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills. So even if you already have many of the elements of emotional intelligence, it's important to look for opportunities to build it further. This will increase your leadership potential and improve the quality of your relationships. You can locate the references and additional resources on this slide.