Published on April 18, 2012
Fact is that a high degree of emotional intelligence is the differentiating factor that can transform good team leaders into truly outstanding and successful ones. Little wonder then that people with high IQ levels still seem to struggle in their jobs and their analytical skills can hardly predict leadership abilities. Even extraordinary talent is often rendered useless sans the key ingredient of emotional perspicacity.
What is emotional intelligence and how it helps
EQ (Emotional Quotient) is a broad term encompassing awareness of one's own emotions and their effect on others as well as how to manage and restrain those emotions in a healthy and productive manner. In addition, it helps to intuitively read people's reactions and treat people accordingly which enables to build good rapport, trust, relationships and networks.
Emotionally mature team leaders are also intensely motivated and have a driving passion for their work. They are optimistic, resilient, adaptable, trustworthy and persuasive. Not only are they open to change, but can also lead change pretty triumphantly. The people skills help them to understand what makes team members tick and thus build, lead and inspire efficient teams towards success. Members depend on them for consistency, good judgment and the ability to do the right thing at the right time.
Emotionally intelligent leaders are often blamed as being too soft, nice and emotional.
But they can confront sticky situations with extreme self-confidence and behave assertively when necessary. This enables them to keep the team in an engaged, participative and collaborative mode while subtly moving them in the right direction. By successfully connecting with the entire team, they directly affect team morale, performance and efficiency.
Tipping the balance
This is not to say that good, old-fashioned intelligence or technical skills are rendered any less relevant.
They are essential drivers of a team leader's success but never as important as the emotional skills factor.
As Daniel Goleman, the author of Emotional Intelligence and co-author of Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence highlights, “They do matter, but mainly as ‘threshold capabilities'; that is, they are the entry-level requirements for executive positions. But my research, along with other recent studies, clearly shows that emotional intelligence is the sine qua non of leadership. Without it, a person can have the best training in the world, an incisive, analytical mind, and an endless supply of smart ideas, but he still won't make a great leader!”
According to Warren Bennis, author of On Becoming a Leader, “In those fields I have studied, emotional intelligence is much more powerful than IQ in determining who emerges as a leader. IQ is a threshold competence. You need it, but it doesn't make you a star. Emotional intelligence can.”
Daniel Goleman further adds, “When I calculated the ratio of technical skills, IQ and emotional intelligence as ingredients of excellent performance, emotional intelligence proved to be twice as important as the others for jobs at all levels!”
Putting emotional intelligence to work
Powered with the compassion and understanding of human nature, team leaders can successfully manage emotional issues of their teams, deal with contentious members, respond genuinely to members' frustrations/concerns, handle unexpected disappointments and also accept rapid changes in the workplace, all with a level head and strong sense of self.
This is not to say that one has to be born emotionally astute per se. It can be strengthened and even learned with the right attitude, commitment to change and willingness to face one's own flaws. A combination of careful listening, observing and seeking feedback can help eliminate old behaviours and imbibe new approaches. But it is not easy and takes lot of persistence, practice and dedication to truly change for the better.
Even big organisations have taken to building competency models to help identify, train and promote emotionally intelligent employees for future leadership positions. To sum up, technical and emotional skills form two parts of the whole for a successful team leader. A right blend of both is what makes a team leader gifted and complete.
Payal Chanania
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