I remember a couple of years down the road when we all gathered around to discuss the future of technology and how it’s going to impact the world in the days to come. I raised this very question at the heart of our discussions,

“What does it mean to be a good leader?” and as expected, many responded differently.

I deciphered that all stick in the mud people still held tight on to the traditional believes descended down from the time of their forefathers.

“Leadership means having an expanse vision,” says Henry, 32, CEO of a budding startup.

“You talk about leadership and the only thing that comes to my mind is motivating the people who work for me” piped in Ashley, 28 a boutique owner and a mother of two.

There were countless other responses where holier-than-thou audiences chimed in, attributing outstanding leadership as a by-product of motivation, vision, communication, sustainability, etc. However, none whatsoever discussed the element of emotional intelligence.

It fueled me to write this magnanimous post.

While most future leaders are focusing on sustainability and the development of soft skills, they rarely address the element of emotional intelligence.

Therefore, let’s find out how emotional intelligence can turn you into a better leader.

It Helps You Build Everlasting Relationships

Developing people’s skills within an organization is one of the most important abilities that a leader can cultivate. If you want to communicate with your employees or stakeholders effectively, emotional intelligence can help you nurture everlasting relationships with them. Why is communication so vital? It manifests the element of loyalty and trust among each other. No one would want to follow along on your footsteps if they can’t trust you.

But before becoming a leader that inspires others to have faith in them, it is extremely essential that you trust your emotions and polish your own instincts. After all, it makes all the difference if you can observe how others perceive you to be. Connecting with individuals on myriad emotional levels will create a loyal fan following for you; the one that promises that your business will touch success heights. 

It Helps You Overlook Redundant Feedbacks

Most leaders are of an opinion that effective feedback can help them expand their business performance. Irrespective of whether a feedback is coming from an employee or a customer, it helps the leader groom themselves and their processes in order to sustain professional harmony.

Leaders want to hear the truth even when they are not interested in the message. Heeding constructive feedbacks is significant, however ignoring the ones that are utterly needless is an art. Leaders equipped with emotional intelligence don’t allow negative feedbacks to cloud their judgment or focus.

An emotionally intelligent leader isn’t easily offended by another person’s opinion of them. Don’t ever fall into the trap of self-boasting or considering yourself par excellent just because you receive less negative criticism. There is a fat chance that people don’t do it out of fear. Let them speak up and tell you about your flaws, it can help you become not only a better person but also an outstanding leader.

It Helps You Hang out with Diverse Groups

Nowadays, leaders believe that hanging out with people who are similar to them can help them achieve their aims and goals. To some extent, I can agree with the fact; but, here’s the downside of surrounding yourselves with your own clones. If you aren’t going to allow people with diverse mindsets to enter into your professional circle, you are corking up the opportunity to grow massively in business.

Maybe, you don’t like to hear the other person’s opinion and it really demotivates you when someone contradicts your views. It certainly doesn’t mean they aren’t following your vision and are totally against it. Sometimes, people don’t talk, their experience does. And, even if you don’t like the opinion coming from a colleague or stakeholder; just hold your horses, don’t shun them away.

Don’t fall into the ego trap; develop emotional intelligence to look beyond your ego towards a solution.

It Helps You Understand, You Are Under Observation

You are a leader because of a reason. You inspire others. if someone chose to work under your leadership, it’s because you inspired them to do so. But, inspiration doesn’t come without a cost. And, the cost of inspiration is observation. From employees working for you to various external stakeholder, every other individual would like to explore you in and out.

Starting off with employees as they are always paying attention to what you are doing…from your punctuality at work to giving away accolades, for employees everything matters. Most leaders believe in empathy and often put themselves in their employees’ shoes. They become one in the club with their task force. It’s okay to behave like them but at the end of the day, you need to understand that you are their leader.

Although emotional intelligence can help you communicate with your workforce in an optimal way, it is always advised that you keep your role as a leader persistent. Don’t forget, they are reading you.

It Helps You Identify Yourself

Last but not the least, emotional intelligence helps you seek the real you. It helps you better understand your upside and your downside equally. Besides, when you are communicating with a group of individuals on an emotional level, they explain to you about yourself in a much better way than when you conduct a self-analysis.

Instead of focusing on the small activities that take away a large chunk of your energy. You certainly don’t want to experience it and by understanding yourself better, you will be able to avoid the tiny details and focus more deeply on creating an engaging strategy.

It Helps You Become a Better Empath

Not every leader entertains employees as if they are a part of their family, but the leaders who do, ensure that their employees are well connected with them across all levels. Developing emotional intelligence, where a leader is compelled to understand their subjects by putting themselves in their shoes, requires courage, patience, and integrity.

If a leader is capable of comprehending the problems of his workforce, he can interact with them in a better way and help them resolve their queries more efficiently. Leaders with high social awareness and equally leveled emotional drives are more successful when it comes to resonating with their customers and grasping their pain points. In fact, they are always on the brink of presenting people-focused solutions.

Conclusion

Most organizations refrain from discussing emotional intelligence in professional settings because it is not something to learn. However, they often fail to realize that the power of emotional intelligence far outweighs the power of many other soft skills that you can develop. A leader who is capable of controlling his emotions can surpass all other hurdles in businesses. Above stated are some important tactics that you can use to stabilize yourself as an emotionally intelligent leader. Until, next time, cheers.