Emotional Intelligence - the ultimate transferrable skill

Was forwarded an interesting article from the Boston Globe: 'Emotional Intelligence' a new hiring criterion.

The label is new, but not the concept: we all know that we'd rather work with people who are pleasant to be around for the eight or more hours per day we spend in the workplace. The factors usually described as Emotional Intelligence (EQ) give us some great specific hints as to why that is true.

From Erica Noonan's article:

"EQ comprises a collection of so-called "soft" skills, including self-awareness, an understanding of how your mood and behavior affect others; impulse control, including how you manage stress on the job; initiative, whether or not you can be counted on to report to work on time, manage your own time, and meet expectations; and the ability to lead and motivate others. But empathy - the ability to understand and acknowledge another's point of view - is the big enchilada."

(Surprisingly, "Optimism" which seems to always included was not on this list.)

I can't tell you the number of clients who have listed "leadership" as one of their top skills without pairing it with empathy, self-awareness or impulse control. In my opinion without these other elements "leadership" and "initiative" will only get you so far, until the perception of them turns to "manipulative" or "tyrant."

Back to the article: "Some good news for older job candidates: older workers tend to have more emotional intelligence, usually through hard-won experience." Hmmm, more than the entitlement generation, they tend to know that it's not all about them.

I couldn't agree more with the point made that the emphasis on EQ isn't about a "kinder, gentler workplace." On the contrary, as Noonan points out, when globazation and technology drive a growing business emphasis on communication, cooperation and teamwork, EQ is about being successful at any job - helping your company gain the competitive edge. Study after study shows that those - in almost every field - with more EQ outperform those who score lower.

If you're currently looking for work, I can't recommend this strongly enough: as well as doing your research on companies and maybe brushing up on your technical or social media skills, do some work to increase your EQ. A great place to start is with Daniel Goleman's seminal work on the subject. Happy reading!