In this episode of Transform Your Workplace, renowned psychologist and author Dr. Steven Stein delves into the vital role of EQ in shaping a positive and productive workforce. Amidst the evolving dynamics of remote and digital work environments, Dr. Stein emphasizes the heightened importance of EQ in the modern world of work, stressing its critical role in effective communication, collaboration, and decision-making. Don’t miss this compelling discussion on harnessing emotional intelligence for workplace success.
GUEST AT A GLANCE
Dr. Steven Stein, author of Emotional Intelligence for Dummies, is a renowned psychologist and consultant who has lent his expertise to numerous military and government agencies in Canada and the United States. His influence extends to corporate giants like American Express and Air Canada, as well as professional sports teams, while his work in psychological services and candidate screening has left an indelible mark on reality TV shows such as Big Brother Canada and Amazing Race Canada.
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DEFINING TERMS
According to recent guest Dr. Steven Stein, emotional intelligence is a fundamental key to fostering a positive workforce environment. There are three core elements of emotional intelligence: awareness of one’s own and others’ emotions, the ability to manage these emotions effectively, and leveraging emotions to enhance focus and productivity.
As the author of Emotional Intelligence for Dummies, Dr. Stein has spent the last twenty years bringing attention to the necessity of emotional intelligence in any workplace interaction, whether in traditional office settings or the evolving landscape of remote and digital work environments. He stressed that as society becomes increasingly interconnected and reliant on digital platforms, the demand for emotional intelligence skills only intensifies, as EQ is indispensable in fostering effective communication, collaboration, and overall workplace cohesion.
PODCAST EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
Measuring EQ
“The EQI is really the most effective way [to measure emotional intelligence across a workforce]. It’s research-based. It’s being used all over the world in the military and governments and corporations and nonprofits. And it really looks at five general areas that break down into fifteen specific areas. It looks at self-perception — the way you look at yourself, how you see yourself. Self-expression — we’ve learned over time that it’s really important how you express yourself. You’re a leader. Do you hide your feelings or do you let people know what you’re really feeling about a situation? We look at interpersonal skills. How good are you at initiating relationships? Maintaining those relationships? We look at decision-making. Do your emotions cloud your decision-making because you get over-emotional or you try and use no emotions? […] And finally, we look at stress management — the ability to use your emotions to manage stress more effectively.”
COVID and Emotional Intelligence
“We’ve been testing people — several million people that we’ve tested over time — but we did look at a cohort that we did examine before and after or to the late part of the pandemic. And we did find some interesting changes, in leaders specifically, that we looked at, and one was just generally speaking that leaders during the pandemic were paying less attention to their subordinates. They were more concerned with the things going on around them — the pandemic and so on — that they were a bit less attentive to the people around them. On the other hand, they were also more assertive. So they were more likely to tell people what they wanted done, what to do, what [they needed].”
Increasing with Age
“Well, interestingly, when we look at the cohorts of age, we find that emotional intelligence tends to increase as we get older, and some of it makes perfect sense. […] We become less impulsive. Like impulse control is one of the measures we look at when we’re younger. We want to jump at it, go do it, try something out. When we’re older, we’re a little more pensive about, ‘Oh, should I really do this? Let me think about it a bit more.’ Also, when it comes to things like problem-solving, we get a little bit better or different at doing that, where again, we use a little bit more patience as we get older.”
A Common Misconception
“People think it means being nice, and it’s not about being nice at all. There are emotionally intelligent people that are not so nice. It’s how you express yourself, how you get things across, but it doesn’t mean you accept everything and you love everybody. It’s not like the old sixties love fest. It’s really about being aware of your emotions and managing them and using them. And sometimes I want to look tough and I want to look like I’m angry or upset with what you’re doing because that’s more effective in helping me get you on side to what I want you to do. So that’s probably one of the biggest misconceptions that we have.”
How Things Have Changed
“So it started out that people didn’t believe there was a place for these things in the workplace at all. I think now we’ve changed significantly, and we understand how emotions affect our work, affect our interactions with people, and how important it is not to suppress these emotions, but to better manage them, to use them to your advantage, and to make teams more cooperative. How do you work with someone that you don’t like? Well, if you’re emotionally intelligent, you find ways around that, and you find ways to motivate people, even if they’re not your favorite people.”
Making the Right Call
“There’s a fair bit of research on decision-making and emotional intelligence. There’s a study looking at stock traders, for example, showing that those who are not too impulsive, for example, or more patient, tend to make better stock trades. So what it does is it allows you to be less impulsive, to sort of think your way through making decisions. It helps you gauge reality better. You know, some people are clouded by what they wish the world was as opposed to what it really is, so being able to manage your emotions helps you be more patient to look at reality and be more realistic in how you approach the world. And it helps you become a better problem solver because you’re better at not just looking at the logical aspect of each choice, but looking at the emotional aspect of each choice.”
LEARN MORE
Dive deeper into the timely topic of emotional intelligence by checking out Dr. Steven Stein’s website here.