You’ve probably heard of emotional intelligence (EI). The subject is increasingly relevant in a society full of challenges. Having emotional tools to deal with the various scenarios in personal life is widely discussed, and equally important is using your resources in the corporate environment.
A survey conducted at HR First Class – one of the largest Human Resources events in Brazil, reveals that 76% of HR leadership wants to implement corporate happiness programs in their institutions. However, putting this into practice ends up being a big challenge; either due to the lack of leader adoption or even due to the scarcity of a corporate organizational culture genuinely focused on human well-being within corporations. Often there is the discourse; a coherent narrative, but in practice, there is no concern for the emotional empowerment of people, and this is a harsh reality in many companies.
Here I take the opportunity to highlight a very important factor, we all have EI, it is not necessary to acquire this skill, but rather to recognize it and develop it. It is an inexhaustible source; an energy that we can always renew and use to our advantage, but for that, there are paths that help us in this journey. This is where companies can come in as facilitators and as an inherent part of human development, and consequently professional development of their employees, supporting them and offering guidance, support, conditions for the development of wholesome work.
It is important to emphasize that Emotional Intelligence is above all the ability to manage emotions, but when we look at the corporate world and identify the deficit of this intelligence, we face numerous problems in the work environment. The leader in this context is crucial, as they inspire and impact their team. When this professional has more well-structured emotional skills, they can be admired and followed by others through a connection, and this definitely gives meaning to the relationship that becomes prosperous and carries the common purpose among the people in that group.
Leaders with EI humanize relationships; understanding themselves as a fundamental part in problem-solving and company growth, but it is through their team that they become protagonists. These employees are free to propose ideas, suggest, admit mistakes, and ask for help, knowing that they will not be judged, but supported for their development in an environment where they feel safe and capable. See, it doesn’t mean that a leader doesn’t have to achieve results or goals, nor that they can’t give negative feedback or even decide on a dismissal, but it means doing all of this while respecting the potential and individuality of others.
Reinforcement that beyond all that we have reflected until now, leaders must be the great encouragers alongside their teams to start this process of self-knowledge since it is an individual journey that precedes Emotional Intelligence. Self-awareness allows us to know ourselves; as we are; with all that is good and bad within us. In this process, one of the intelligences in greater evidence is EI; we learn to recognize what is behind our positive and negative emotions, where they come from, and how we behave, feel, and act through them – and without realizing it – that is, how we behave in the world with ourselves and with others. It is necessary for leaders and followers to continue to seek these paths to curb as soon as possible the absurd number of people with emotional and mental health problems stemming from work. We are all responsible for building an environment outside and inside work where insanity is not greater than our ability to stop it.
