Start with 8 facts about emotions and emotional intelligence

1  Emotions are Part of Our Biology

2  Emotions are Messages

3  Emotions are Contagious

4  Emotions Change & Combine

5  We Feel Multiple Feelings

6  Optimism is Learned

7  Our Brains Are Wired for Empathy

8  Altruism Helps Us

Then do practical activities to put them into action!

Tune in to your emotions with a Body-Mind-Heart Scan

Many of us have been socialized to ignore or suppress emotions, internalizing advice to ‘leave emotions of out of it.’ As a result, sometimes people push emotions away, try not to feel, and miss important signals. Emotional intelligence means using emotions as a valuable source of data – and that starts with tuning into how we’re feeling.

After years of practice ignoring feelings, it can be challenging to tune into them. Some people find it helpful to notice what’s happening in their bodies: Is your jaw tight? Is your back sore? Are your fists clenched? Is your brow furrowed? Physical sensations could be clues to help you notice what you’re feeling emotionally.

A few times each day, take a moment and tune in. Try the Body-Mind-Heart (BMH) scan:

Grow your emotional literacy with Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions

Learn the meaning of the 8 basic emotions and what they are trying to tell you. Then dive into practical activities to put that knowledge into action and learn the language of emotions.

Plutchik’s 8 Basic Emotions + Messages

Joy helps us to notice what’s going well and recreate it

Trust helps us to focus on what is safe and act with confidence

Fear helps us to notice threats and move to protect

Surprise helps us to notice what is new or unfamiliar and respond

Sadness helps us to notice what we love and cherish and reflect

Disgust helps us to reject what’s unhealthy or wrong and set boundaries 

Anger helps us to notice what’s blocking our path and energizes us to break through

Anticipation helps us notice what we’re looking forward to and prep

Practice emotional intelligence in 3 questions with the Six Seconds Model

Emotional intelligence is the capacity to blend thinking and feeling to make optimal decisions — which is key to having a successful relationship with yourself and others. To provide a practical and simple way to learn and practice emotional intelligence, we developed the Six Seconds Model of Emotional Intelligence nearly 30 years ago. You can take the Six Seconds Emotional Intelligence assessment (SEI) to get in-depth feedback on your emotional intelligence competencies in this framework, but this simple worksheet from the Practicing EQ eBook is a great way to practice anywhere, anytime.

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