What Is Emotional Intelligence?

What is emotional intelligence and why do we care?

Retexo offers tools for personal, interpersonal, and cultural growth. The context in which we provide those tools is business and leadership, but ultimately what matters to us is that people learn, grow, and live happier, more fulfilling lives wherever they happen to be. One of the most powerful opportunities we know for achieving that aim is understanding and developing emotional intelligence.

Emotion is at the core of what it is to be human. It is our emotions that move us to act. The Latin movere, “to move,” is the root of the word itself. Developing emotional intelligence allows us to better understand why we and others do the things we do. Pretty important stuff. What follows will be the first of a multi-part series on EI, starting with an overview of what EI is and how it came to be. We hope you’ll take just a few minutes to read on.

Emotional intelligence theory in 244 words…

There are several theoretical models of emotional intelligence, and many assessments designed to measure EI relative to those models. The model and assessment used by Retexo was originally conceived and developed by Reuven Bar-on, an Israeli psychologist, researcher, and pioneer in the field. Dr. Bar-on introduced the concept of an “emotional quotient,” or “EQ” as analogous to IQ. Today, Bar-on’s original assessment and model have been revised and updated by Multi-Health Systems (MHS) as the EQ-i 2.0™.

Many will also be familiar with the work of psychologist and author Daniel Goleman, whose 1995 book, Emotional Intelligence, did much to bring the idea of EI into mainstream conversation. Its provocative subtitle, “Why it can matter more than IQ,” in particular seemed to grab the attention of many. We agree. Emotional intelligence can matter more than IQ, but this quote is often taken out of context, or simply misquoted as “EQ matters more than IQ.” Goleman himself has been very clear that the fact that emotional intelligence can matter more than IQ does not mean that IQ does not matter. It does, and so do experience, skills, training, and any number of other factors. That said, when we encounter difficulties in our personal and professional lives, when leaders struggle, and when careers go off track, our emotions and the emotions of others are usually at the source of the matter, and developing our emotional intelligence is therefore a critical element of any path forward.

Still waiting on a definition?

Fair enough. What, then, is emotional intelligence? MHS defines it as follows:

Emotional Intelligence is a set of emotional and social skills that collectively establish how well we perceive and express ourselves, develop and maintain social relationships, cope with challenges, and use emotional information in an effective and meaningful way.

So why does it matter?

Developing our emotional intelligence makes room for fuller self-expression, better relationships, and resilience in the face of all life’s challenges. Few endeavors have such potential to positively impact our lives and the lives of those we care about. That’s why we recommend it to our clients. This article is part of a series on emotional intelligence, and we hope you will stay tuned for more, and click here if you are interested in taking the EQ-i 2.0 assessment.