What is EQ and do you have it?

We’ve all heard of IQ and those with a high score such as Steven Hawking, but what about EQ?

Did you know that actor James Woods, has a higher IQ score than Bill Gates and Stephen Hawking? Whereas the king of pop Michael Jackson, Princess Diana, Leonardo DiCaprio and David Beckham are reported as having the highest EQ’s among celebrities.

In my new book The Path To Learning I share with you the latest psychological research that shows hows how IQ and EQ play a key role in understanding student behaviour.

Research shows that above an IQ level of 120, EQ is the best predictor of success in an individual. So what’s your IQ and how does EQ affect you? There are many online tests out there for you to try, each with their own interpretation but here’s the simple version.

EQ, the emotional quotient, tests and measures emotional intelligence i.e. your ability to empathise with others. In order for you to empathise, by definition, you must be able to recognise the emotions of others as well as your own. So, how well do you know yourself? Who are you? Has anyone ever asked you that?

Perhaps you’ve gone for an interview or have been in a social setting where someone has said ‘tell us about yourself’ how do you respond to that? Depending on your personality type the reaction can range from a boastful thirty minute monologue about how single handedly great you are, to a humble statement like ‘I’m just me’ As you have probably already gathered neither extreme is useful to the person asking for the information. The EQ just isn’t there.

Leadership expert John C Maxwell says ‘People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care

How right he is, the more you are able to use your emotions to assist your thinking and put that together with emotional understanding, the easier it will be for you to connect with others. In other words the more self aware you are, the more you will be able to communicate with others.

So, how do you increase your EQ?

Simple, ‘know thy self’ Knowing what drives you is great fuel for the soul. Whether you are at work, or working on a personal project or pursuit, having a deeper understanding of your motivators will see you through the good times and the not so good times. Having a true purpose for what you do will allow you to connect with others on a higher EQ level.

In the soon to be released book The Path To Learning, answering these questions is a great way to get you started. Take a pause between each question to reflect on your answer.

  1. Who has had a major positive impact on your life?
    • What was the situation?
    • How did they make an impact?
    • How has that shaped your life?
  2. What’s your best example of leadership?
    • Who were you leading?
    • What made it so great?
    • How would you describe your level of passion in this situation?
  3. How do you react to setbacks in your life?
    • Can you think of a specific example?
    • Knowing what you know now, would you have reacted differently?
    • How has this shaped your life?

Understanding your emotions to each answer will help you to recognise similar emotions in others, hence improving your EQ. For more ways to build your EQ you can pre order The Path To Learning here.

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