Emotional intelligence represents our ability to exert self-awareness, empathy, motivation and social skills at work and in life. As a co-worker and manager, learning to control and harness your emotions to improve your team’s morale and drive business success is at the heart of bringing emotional intelligence to work.
According to Dr. Travis Bradberry, emotional intelligence is responsible for 58 percent of job performance, and 90 percent of top performers have a high emotional intelligence quotient (EQ).
A high EQ will foster better physical health, mental health, social skills, conflict resolution, success, and leadership. In this article, we’ll focus on the many benefits a high EQ provides to project leadership – and how you can improve your EQ for future projects.
The Benefits of Emotional Intelligence in Project Management
According to Anthony Mersino in his book, Emotional Intelligence for Project Managers: The People Skills You Need to Achieve Outstanding Results, there are several key benefits to learning and applying emotional intelligence in the workplace, including:
- The ability to develop relationships with stakeholders that support your success
- The ability to avoid emotional breakdowns by communicating effectively with your team
- The opportunity to create a positive work environment with improved morale
- The ability to envision project objectives that inspire and motivate your team
- The ability to effectively handle conflict and difficult team members
Improving Your Score
There are many, many ways to improve your emotional intelligence – but nearly all of them begin with taking a look inside yourself. To make yourself a better, more effective project leader, consider:
- Improving your self-awareness by keeping a daily or weekly journal
- Reducing your stress level through meditation and exercise
- Getting support from a manager, co-worker, friend, spouse or mentor
- Talking your feelings and thoughts through with someone you trust
- Taking a moment to laugh at yourself, rather than taking the world seriously
- Gauging your emotions throughout the day
- Establishing a list of destructive behaviors to avoid
Unlike your IQ, which can be developed over time, your EQ can be improved rapidly – growing each time you take a moment to better understand yourself and the team members around you.
By mastering emotional intelligence, you can set yourself apart from the competition, making it easier to attain and retain impressive talent on your projects.
At PMO Partners, we take pride in our ability to match your project with the team members you need to be successful. Contact our team of experts to learn more about our services.
