April 18, 2003

EQ Reflection: Making The Case

Some people are interested in emotional intelligence for its own sake.
They see this way of looking at people as worthwhile simply because it
helps us understand who we are, and then live more consciously and with
more caring.

Others are intrigued by the promise of emotion intelligence as a tool set
to achieve specific goals. They see that becoming more aware, attuned,
and conscious of emotions facilitates the smooth functioning of
relationships at home, school, and work.

As the Six Seconds' team has worked to find ways of advocating for people
to learn and practice these skills, we've found ourselves talking less
about EQ as a value in itself, and more about EQ as a tool set for solving pressing problems. This "bottom line" approach is about meeting people's needs for effective solutions to the nearly insurmountable challenges
facing us in all sectors.

Perhaps asking people to accept EQ for its own sake is a bit like evangelizing. After all, my job is not to convert people, it is to assist them to reach their goals; so I find myself answering this questions:
"How can this perspective make me more effective in and outside of
work?" That focus on benefits seems to help people see how emotional
intelligence is useful.

On the other hand, sometimes I am afraid that simply looking at the "bottom
line" benefits allows us to lose site of the transformational power of
attending to feelings. And, that by looking for the outcomes, we might stop
paying attention to the process. The promise of emotional intelligence does not come from manipulating emotions to serve business goals -- it comes
from abiding authenticity, reaching deep to care in spite of pressure, and
to connect as one human to another. Ironically, this elusive commitment is
the approach that actually creates high performance -- and the pursuit of
high performance without the authenticity creates distress and empty
platitudes.

Clearly, we need to find a balance of EQ for its own sake and EQ "for
profit." I envision it like clearing the snows of winter. We can use our
skills to clear the snow from our paths, and there is great advantage to
doing so. But the transformation of summer's blooming flowers only
happens when we learn to practice these skills with our full authenticity.

Anticipating summer,
-Josh


PS. I'd appreciate your feedback about "the case for EQ" as I've made it on
the NexusEQ web site. Select "Why EQ" from the top menu:

*** http://NexusEQ.com ***



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It would be a great help to us if you'd spread this message far and wide!
Just keep this part too please!
©2003, Joshua Freedman, Six Seconds
Six Seconds EQ Network: Inspiring emotional wisdom.

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About the author:
Joshua Freedman is the Director of Programs for the Six Seconds EQ Network.
He is the coordinator of the International NexusEQ Conferences, Editor of EQ
Today, and one of the organization's trainers and consultants. Josh's most
important role is loving his wife Patty and their children Maxwell Abraham
(2) and Emma Rose (4).

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