OU/SFC/BMS - SoftSkill & Corporate Communication Notes - Unit-1: Intro&1.1

UNIT - 1  Emotional Intelligence for Leadership (Being Better-Aware of Self) 

(10 hours)

1.        EI IN Leadership

1.A.        How Ei Was Recognised

1.B. Emotional Intelligence Defined

1.C. The Business Relevance Of Emotional Intelligence

1.1.               Emotional Intelligence

1.1.1.       EI as Stithaprajna in Gita

1.1.A.     Improve IE

1.1.B.     Characteristic of IE

1.1.B.1.  Self-Awareness

1.1.B.1L.       Self-Awareness for Leaders

1.1.B.2.  Self-Regulation

1.1.B.2L.       Self-Regulation for Leaders

1.1.B.3.  Motivation

1.1.B.3L.       Motivation for Leaders

1.1.B.4.  Empathy

1.1.B.4L.       Empathy for Leaders

1.1.B.5.  Social Skills

1.1.B.5L.       Social Skills for Leaders

1.1.C.     Improve Your EI

1.1.D.    Evaluating Emotional Intelligence

1.2.               Motivation

1.2.1.     Motivation

1.2.1.A.  Intrincic Motivation

1.2.1.B.  Extrinsic motivation

1.2.2.     PRACTICAL TOOLS AND STRATEGIES

1.2.3.     INTERNAL SYSTEMS 

1.2.3.A.  Extraversion

1.2.3.B.  Introversion

1.2.4.     A Bit of Perfume – Motivation - Giving praise

1.2.5.     Motivation in Leadership

1.3.               Goal-Setting

1.3.A.     Goal

1.3.B.     PURUSHARTHAS

1.3.C.     GOAL SETTING

1.3.D.    Goal Setting – Personal

(Planning to Live Your Life Your Way)

1.3.D.1. Why Set Goals?

1.3.D.2. Starting to Set Personal Goals

1.3.D.3. Timescales of Goals

1.3.E.     Goal Setting Theory of Motivation

1.4.               Leadership and Team Building

1.4.A.     LEADERSHIP

1.4.A.1.  Seven Traits Associated With Leadership

1.4.A.2.  Leadership Styles

1.4.A.3.  Leadership Traits

1.4.A.4.  Leadership Myths

1.4.A.5.  New Demands Leaders Have To Meet

1.4.A.6.  Leadership With Heart

1.4.A.7.  Why Ei Is Needed In Leadership

1.4.A.8.  How To Use Ei In Developing Leadership

1.4.A.9.  Leadership And Motivation

1.4.B.     TEAM BUILDING

1.4.B.1.  Team Dynamic

1.4.B.2.  Goals

1.4.B.3.  Leadership Roles

1.4.B.4.  Team Building Exercises

1.4.B.5.  Types Of Teams

1.4.B.6.  Stages Of Team Development

1.4.B.7.  Team Management

1.4.B.8.  Six Deadly Sins Of Team Building

1.4.B.9. Resolving Team Conflict

1.4.C.     LEADERSHIP AND TEAM BUILDING

1.4.C.1.  Organizations

1.4.C.2.  Management

1.4.C.3.  Group Leadership

1.4.C.4.  Performance

1.4.C.5.  Leadership And Culture

1.4.C.6.  Corporate Culture

1.4.C.7.  Leadership Trends

1.4.C.8.  EI For Leadership And Team Relation

1.5.               Decision making skills

1.5.1.     Decision Making Process

1.5.2.     Types Of Decisions

1.5.3.     Decision Makng Conditions

1.5.4.     Preferences        

1.5.5.     Thinking Vs. Feeling

1.5.6.     Emotion And Decision

1.5.7.     The Point Of Decision

1.5.8.     Decision Making Styles

1.5.9.     Collaborative Decision Making

1.5.10.   Emotional Decision Making

1.5.11.   Intuition Based Decision Making

1.5.12.   Rational Decision Making

1.  EI IN LEADERSHIP

In this UNIT-1 we'll look at why emotional intelligence is so important for leaders – and how you, as a leader, can improve yours.

Emotional Intelligence has become a vital part of how today's leaders meet the significant challenges they face. Emotional Intelligence can help leaders in an evermore difficult leadership role, one that fewer and fewer people seem capable of fulfilling. And in the middle of the "Talent War", especially at the highest levels in organisations, emotional intelligence can give developing leaders a competitive edge.

We probably also know people who are masters at managing their emotions. They don't get angry in stressful situations. Instead, they have the ability to look at a problem and calmly find a solution. They're excellent decision makers, and they know when to trust their intuition. Regardless of their strengths, however, they're usually willing to look at themselves honestly. They take criticism well, and they know when to use it to improve their performance.

As more and more people accept that emotional intelligence is just as important to professional success as technical ability, organizations are increasingly using EI when they hire and promote.

People with high emotional intelligence are usually successful in most things they do. Why? Because they're the ones that others want on their team. When people with high EI send an email, it gets answered. When they need help, they get it. Because they make others feel good, they go through life much more easily than people who are easily angered or upset.

1.A. HOW EI WAS RECOGNISED

In 1980 Reuven Baron was researching the qualities that lead to success. Dr. Bar-On is an internationally known expert and pioneer in the field of emotional intelligence and has been involved in defining, measuring and applying various aspects of this construct since 1980. He showed there was much more than traditional Intelligence or IQ and developed the concept of Emotional Intelligence - the Emotional Quotient or EQ was born. [http://www.reuvenbaron.org/about-reuven-baron/]

In 1985 an influential psychologist called Howard Gardener also challenged the current view of intelligence and proposed 7 multiple intelligences which included social intelligence.

The idea that success in both life and in work (at least where managing people is a significant factor) became highly credible and organisations have recognised how their best leaders and managers need to develop their understanding of themselves and others.

In 1995 Daniel Goleman published the best seller "Emotional Intelligence" which has done a great deal for popularising the concept.

1.B.              EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE DEFINED

Psychologists have developed various concepts of intelligence, including linguistic, logical-mathematical, spatial, musical, bodily-kinaesthetic, interpersonal, and intrapersonal social intelligence (Ruisel, 1992; Gardner, 1993). Social intelligence comprises both inter- and intrapersonal intelligences (Gardner, 1993a and Thorndike, 1920). Interpersonal intelligence is the ability to understand other people: what motivates them, how they work, how to work cooperatively with them. Intrapersonal intelligence is the capacity to form an accurate, authentic model of the self and to be able to use that model to operate effectively in life. Since emotional intelligence also consists of these two elements (Salovey & Mayer, 1990), it is possible to suggest that social and emotional intelligences are the same. Emotional intelligence encompasses self-awareness, self-management, social awareness or empathy and social skills (Goleman, 2000).

1.C.       THE BUSINESS RELEVANCE OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE

Emotional intelligence accounts for more than 85% of exceptional achievement (Goleman,1995). While technical skills are necessary for productivity, these are insufficient to explain the difference between high and mediocre performers. High performance individuals show emotional intelligence as task complexity increases.

Authors agree that individuals with high emotional intelligence are motivated, selfdisciplined, aspire to excellence, and continually seek re-skilling, learning and adding value (Goleman, 1995, 1998, 2000; Ashforth & Humphrey, 1995; Gilad, 1996 and Mayer & Salovey, 1997).

Their mental agility sustains long-term business development and builds organisational culture of high morale, which prevents the loss of talent. Self-aware individuals display many of the characteristics of successful leadership. They have a deep understanding of their own emotions, strengths, weaknesses, needs and drives. They are neither overly critical nor unrealistically optimistic; instead they are honest with themselves and with others. Self-awareness extends to an understanding of values, goals and other drivers of behaviour and performance (McLagan, 2002). They are thus able to reduce cognitive dissonance by operating in agreement with their values, and influence others through demonstration of these values. In their drive for self-improvement, they create a culture of constructive feedback that fosters personal growth.

Self-regulation is the ability to choose to respond to an event rather than reacting; reasonable people create an environment of trust and fairness, effectively managing politics and infighting by example (Goleman, 1995, 1998). Such organisations attract and retain talent, leading to competitive advantage. In addition, self-regulators cope well in ambiguous business environments.

As they operate from a place of authenticity and integrity they are able to model solid corporate citizenship and governance in changing conditions (Bryan, 2002). Self-regulators are able to think strategically and to delay gratification in short-term results for the more sustainable alternative of investment in long-term growth.

Social awareness and empathy are fundamental to an appreciation of teams, group dynamics, diversity and diversity management. Rapid globalisation, increasing competitive requirements for specialised talents, and greater use of flexible, temporary project teams raise the relevance of this component of emotional intelligence. A deep respect for cultural, social and ethnic differences, coupled with the ability to harness different ways of thinking for corporate advantage is an essential quality of leadership (McDermott, 2002). Social awareness enhances coaching and mentoring relationships, yielding results in improved performance, increased job satisfaction and reduced employee turnover.

1.1.       EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE 

'Emotional Intelligence' is a neat metaphor that borrows from the notion of IQ. It implies that some people are better at handling emotions than others. It also hints that you might be able to increase your EQ. Practically, it offers a useful set of guidelines for doing just this.

Self-awareness

Being emotionally self-aware means knowing how you feel in “real time.” Self-knowledge is the first step in being able to handle emotions. If you can see them and name them, then you at least then have a chance to do something about them.

Emotional literacy

Emotional literacy means being able to label emotions precisely. This includes the emotions of others and especially yourself. It also means being able to talk about emotions without getting overly emotional or (as happens with many people) denying them.
Emotional literacy is not using ‘I feel...’ statements to offer opinions, ideas, etc. Thus 'I feel that is a good idea' is not emotional literacy, whist 'I feel angry' is.

Empathy & compassion

Empathy is the ability to feel and understand the emotions of others. If you can empathies, you can engender trust, as people desperately want to be understood at the emotional level. All great carers and nurturers major in empathy and compassion.

It also means appreciating and accepting differences between people, accepting that we have different priorities and capabilities around emotion.

Balance

The ability to balance emotion and reason in making decisions leads to good decisions. Emotion should not be abandoned, lest cold and callous decisions are made. Nor should logic be abandoned unless you want a wishy-washy outcome.

Responsibility

Emotional Intelligence means taking primary responsibility for your own emotions and happiness. You cannot say that others “made” you feel the way you feel. Although they may be instrumental, the responsibility is yours, just as if you kill someone, there is no argument that says that someone else made you do it.

1.1.0.           EI as Stithaprajna in Gita

SYNONYMS

duhkhesu--in the threefold miseries; anudvigna-manah--without being agitated in mind; sukhesu--in happiness; vigata-sprhah--without being too interested; vita--free from; raga--attachment; bhaya--fear; krodhah--anger; sthita-dhih--one who is steady; munih--a sage; ucyate-- is called.

TRANSLATION

One who is not disturbed in spite of the threefold miseries, who is not elated when there is happiness, and who is free from attachment, fear and anger, is called a sage of steady mind.

1.1.A.   IMPROVE IE

Developing Strong "People Skills"

Being Better Aware of Self

Do you know someone who never lets his temper get out of control, no matter what problems he's facing?

Do you know someone who has the complete trust on their staff, always speaks kindly, listens to their team?

Do you know one with whom you have easy talk and who always makes careful, informed decisions ?

These are qualities of someone with a high degree of emotional intelligence. People like this have a high degree of emotional intelligence, or EI. They know themselves very well, and they're also able to sense the emotional needs of others.

Would you like to be more like this?

So, what exactly is emotional intelligence, and what can you do to improve yours?

We all have different personalities, different wants and needs, and different ways of showing our emotions. Navigating through this all takes tact and cleverness – especially if we hope to succeed in life. This is where emotional intelligence becomes important.

Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize your emotions, understand what they're telling you, and realize how your emotions affect people around you. Emotional intelligence also involves your perception of others: when you understand how they feel, this allows you to manage relationships more effectively.

1.1.B. Characteristics of EI

Daniel Goleman, an American psychologist, developed a framework of five elements that define emotional intelligence:

1.1.B.1.     Self-Awareness

People with high emotional intelligence are usually very self-aware. They understand their emotions, and because of this, they don't let their feelings rule them. They're confident – because they trust their intuition and don't let their emotions get out of control.

They're also willing to take an honest look at themselves. They know their strengths and weaknesses, and they work on these areas so they can perform better. Many people believe that this self-awareness is the most important part of emotional intelligence.

1.1.B.1L.   Self-Awareness for Leaders

If you're self-aware, you always know how you feel. And you know how your emotions, and your actions, can affect the people around you. Being self-aware when you're in a leadership position also means having a clear picture of your strengths and weaknesses. And it means having humility.

To improve your self-awareness

• Keep a journal / Diary – Journals / diaries help improve your self-awareness. If you spend just a few minutes each day writing down your thoughts, this can move you to a higher degree of self-awareness.
• Slow down – When you experience anger or other strong emotions, slow down to examine why. Remember, no matter what the situation, you can always choose how you react to it.

1.1.B.2.     Self-Regulation

This is the ability to control emotions and impulses. People who self-regulate typically don't allow themselves to become too angry or jealous, and they don't make impulsive, careless decisions. They think before they act. Characteristics of self-regulation are thoughtfulness, comfort with change, integrity, and the ability to say no.

1.1.B.2L.   Self-Regulation for Leaders

Leaders who regulate themselves effectively rarely verbally attack others, make rushed or emotional decisions, stereotype people, or compromise their values. Self-regulation is all about staying in control.

This element of emotional intelligence, according to Goleman, also covers a leader's flexibility and commitment to personal accountability.

To improve your ability to self-regulate?

• Know your values – Do you have a clear idea of where you absolutely will not compromise? Do you know what values are most important to you? Spend some time examining your "code of ethics." If you know what's most important to you, then you probably won't have to think twice when you face a moral or ethical decision – you'll make the right choice.
• Hold yourself accountable – If you tend to blame others when something goes wrong, stop. Make a commitment to admit to your mistakes and face the consequences, whatever they are. You'll probably sleep better at night, and you'll quickly earn the respect of those around you.
• Practice being calm – The next time you're in a challenging situation, be very aware of how you act. Do you relieve your stress by shouting at someone else? Practice deep-breathing exercises to calm yourself. Also, try to write down all of the negative things you want to say, and then rip it up and throw it away. Expressing these emotions on paper (and not showing them to anyone!) is better than speaking them aloud to your team. What's more, this helps you challenge your reactions to make sure that they're fair!

1.1.B.3.     Motivation

People with a high degree of emotional intelligence are usually motivated. They're willing to defer immediate results for long-term success. They're highly productive, love a challenge, and are very effective in whatever they do.

1.1.B.3L.   Motivation for Leaders

Self-motivated leaders consistently work toward their goals. And they have extremely high standards for the quality of their work.

How can you improve your motivation?

• Re-examine why you're doing this – It's easy to forget what you really love about your career. So, take some time to remember why you wanted this job. If you're unhappy in your role and you're struggling to remember why you wanted it, find the root of the problem. Starting at the root often helps you look at your situation in a new way.
• And make sure that your goal statements are fresh and energizing.
• Know where you stand – Determine how motivated you are to lead.
• Be hopeful and find something good – Motivated leaders are usually optimistic, no matter what they face. Adopting this mindset might take practice, but it's well worth the effort. Every time you face a challenge, or even a failure, try to find at least one good thing about the situation. It might be something small, like a new contact, or something with long-term effects, like an important lesson learned. But there's almost always something positive – you just have to look for it.

1.1.B.4.     Empathy

This is perhaps the second-most important element of emotional intelligence. Empathy is the ability to identify with and understand the wants, needs, and viewpoints of those around you. People with empathy are good at recognizing the feelings of others, even when those feelings may not be obvious. As a result, empathetic people are usually excellent at managing relationships, listening, and relating to others. They avoid stereotyping and judging too quickly, and they live their lives in a very open, honest way.

1.1.B.4L.   Empathy for Leaders

For leaders, having empathy is critical to managing a successful team or organization. Leaders with empathy have the ability to put themselves in someone else's situation. They help develop the people on their team, challenge others who are acting unfairly, give constructive feedback, and listen to those who need it.

If you want to earn the respect and loyalty of your team, then show them you care by being empathic.

How can you improve your empathy?

• Put yourself in someone else's position – It's easy to support your own point of view. After all, it's yours! But take the time to look at situations from other people's perspectives.
• Pay attention to body language – Perhaps when you listen to someone, you cross your arms, move your feet back and forth, or bite your lip. This body language tells others how you really feel about a situation, and the message you're giving isn't positive! Learning to read body language can be a real asset when you're in a leadership role because you'll be better able to determine how someone truly feels. And this gives you the opportunity to respond appropriately.
• Respond to feelings – You ask your assistant to work late – again. And although he agrees, you can hear the disappointment in his voice. So, respond by addressing his feelings. Tell him you appreciate how willing he is to work extra hours, and that you're just as frustrated about working late. If possible, figure out a way for future late nights to be less of an issue (for example, give him Monday mornings off).

1.1.B.5.     Social Skills

It's usually easy to talk to and like people with good social skills, another sign of high emotional intelligence. Those with strong social skills are typically team players. Rather than focus on their own success first, they help others develop and shine. They can manage disputes, are excellent communicators, and are masters at building and maintaining relationships.

1.1.B.5L.   Social Skills for Leaders

Leaders who do well in this element of emotional intelligence are great communicators. They're just as open to hearing bad news as good news, and they're experts at getting their team to support them and be excited about a new mission or project.

Leaders who have good social skills are also good at managing change and resolving conflicts diplomatically. They're rarely satisfied with leaving things as they are, but they're also not willing to make everyone else do the work. They set the example with their own behavior.

So, how can you improve your leadership by building social skills?

• Learn conflict resolution – Leaders must know how to resolve conflicts between their team members, customers, or vendors. Learning conflict resolution skills is vital if you want to succeed.
• Improve your communication skills – How well do you communicate? One has to be a Good Commnicator to be a Good Leader.
• Learn how to praise others – As a leader, you can inspire the loyalty of your team simply by giving praise when it's earned. Learning how to effectively praise others is a fine art, but well worth the effort.

1.1.C. Improve Your EI

As you've probably determined, emotional intelligence can be a key to success in your life – especially in your career. The ability to manage people and relationships is very important in all leaders, so developing and using your emotional intelligence can be a good way to show others the leader inside of you.

Emotional intelligence (EI) is the ability to understand and manage both your own emotions, and those of the people around you. People with a high degree of emotional intelligence usually know what they're feeling, what this means, and how their emotions can affect other people.

For leaders, having emotional intelligence is essential for success. After all, who is more likely to succeed – a leader who shouts at his team when he's under stress, or a leader who stay in control, and calmly assesses the situation?

The more that you, as a leader, manage each of these areas, the higher your emotional intelligence.

The good news is that emotional intelligence CAN be taught and developed. Many books and tests are available to help you determine your current EI, and identify where you may need to do some work. You can also use these tips:

• Observe how you react to people. Do you rush to judgment before you know all of the facts? Do you stereotype? Look honestly at how you think and interact with other people. Try to put yourself in their place, and be more open and accepting of their perspectives and needs.
• Look at your work environment. Do you seek attention for your accomplishments? Humility can be a wonderful quality, and it doesn't mean that you're shy or lack self-confidence. When you practice humility, you say that you know what you did, and you can be quietly confident about it. Give others a chance to shine – put the focus on them, and don't worry too much about getting praise for yourself.
• Do a self-evaluation. What are your weaknesses? Are you willing to accept that you're not perfect and that you could work on some areas to make yourself a better person? Have the courage to look at yourself honestly – it can change your life.
• Examine how you react to stressful situations. Do you become upset every time there's a delay or something doesn't happen the way you want? Do you blame others or become angry at them, even when it's not their fault? The ability to stay calm and in control in difficult situations is highly valued – in the business world and outside it. Keep your emotions under control when things go wrong.
• Take responsibility for your actions. If you hurt someone's feelings, apologize directly – don't ignore what you did or avoid the person. People are usually more willing to forgive and forget if you make an honest attempt to make things right.
• Examine how your actions will affect others – before you take those actions. If your decision will impact others, put yourself in their place. How will they feel if you do this? Would you want that experience? If you must take the action, how can you help others deal with the effects?

1.1.D. Evaluating Emotional Intelligence

Most large companies today have employed trained psychologists to develop what are known as “competency models” to aid them in identifying, training, and promoting likely stars in the leadership firmament. The psychologists have also developed such models for lower-level positions.

It is possible to test personal capabilities drove outstanding performance within these organizations, and to what degree they did so. Group the capabilities into three categories: purely technical skills like accounting and business planning; cognitive abilities like analytical reasoning; and competencies demonstrating emotional intelligence, such as the ability to work with others and effectiveness in leading change.

To create some of the competency models, psychologists asked senior managers at the companies to identify the capabilities that typified the organization’s most outstanding leaders. To create other models, the psychologists used objective criteria, such as a division’s profitability, to differentiate the star performers at senior levels within their organizations from the average ones. Those individuals were then extensively interviewed and tested, and their capabilities were compared. This process resulted in the creation of lists of ingredients for highly effective leaders.  

Intellect is a driver of outstanding performance. Cognitive skills such as big-picture thinking and long-term vision were particularly important. The ratio of technical skills, IQ, and emotional intelligence as ingredients of excellent performance, emotional intelligence proved to be twice as important as the others for jobs at all levels.