Leading with Emotional Intelligence, Agility And Emotional Bonding

Emotional Intelligence

If you desire to rise to the top, I have found that it requires an in-depth look at yourself and a practice of self-awareness on all levels, personally and professionally. This is the starting point of emotional intelligence. It is like taking one morsel of yourself and putting in under the microscope.

How do you begin this process of increasing emotional intelligence? I recommend starting with an emotional intelligence assessment and working with an executive coach who specializes in this field. Looking into how you rate on a range of competencies begins the journey of self-awareness. From the assessment, you learn what areas you need to strengthen, which strengthens all other competencies.

For example, I had a client who was low on self-confidence, decision making competency and tolerance for stress. During our work together, we focused on increasing his self-confidence. Once that improved, he had more confidence in his decision making and his stress tolerance improved. Embedded in self-awareness is learning how your perceptions shape how you navigate and make decisions. Within months of these positive changes, he moved into the C-suite level within his organization: a position he thought was out of reach until we worked together.

Inner Agility

One of the areas measured by an emotional intelligence assessment is flexibility — a component of agility that is a crucial ability for great leaders and organizational health. A leader needs to develop an organization that is agile, which is a combination of stability and the ability to change quickly in a rapidly changing world — a formula for success.

One of the top qualities of an agile company is role clarity, and this begins with a leader’s ability to be clear about their own role and position. In addition to the mission statement and vision of the company, you need to be clear on what your personal vision is, as well as your own mission statement. In the words of Simon Sinek, know your why.

Knowing the answers to the following questions will help you develop your personal vision and your mission statement to discover your why:

• What kind of organization would you be inspired to work in?
• What kind of team would you want to lead?
• Why do you want to be a leader?
• What are your ideals?
• What is your purpose in life?
• What are your strengths and contributions?
• What are your best qualities?
• What are your great leadership qualities?
• What is your overall mission in your life?
• What is the mission behind what motivates you to do what you do?

The more clarity you have about yourself regarding your purpose and mission, the more grounded you will be for those you lead. Your stability is crucial, especially when confronted with challenging times during change. At the same time, you need to be flexible and agile to manage your stress rather than becoming rigid, which is a common posture taken during highly charged situations and what I refer to as a “go-to” pattern that keeps you stuck. Knowing your vision — and the vision of the organization — sustains your leadership for those around you through the dark times. When there is a crisis, you are often faced with uncertainty, and knowing your why will help you navigate the discomfort of the crisis.

Emotional Bonding

Exemplary leaders emotionally bond with those they lead by being attentive through active listening, care about those they lead, notice and acknowledge the strengths and successes of others and take responsibility for changing and growing as a mentor for others.

When an organization is in the midst of a crisis, the need for a strong leader increases. Conversely, a leader needs to know they have the unwavering support of those they lead. Having a strong emotional bond with your team is the way to be confident of that support. How does one increase the emotional bond? Emotional bonding is cultivated through a deep understanding of those you lead — pay attention to their needs, take a personal interest in them and what makes them who they are, and cultivate a close relationship. A leader shows vulnerability instead of being aloof while being emotionally responsible and avoiding using anger as a way to lead. Changing your mindset from leading with authority to leading with loyalty builds the emotional bond that makes your followers want to perform at their best and be a part of manifesting the vision of the organization.

When you begin the journey to becoming a great leader, increasing emotional intelligence will help you develop your inner agility — the winning combination of stability and the ability to change. Developing your agility will give you the strength to form emotional bonds where you can lead through empowerment. A great leader empowers their followers rather than managing them.

One final tip for great leadership that can be accomplished through increased emotional intelligence: A great leader is open to feedback and is not affected by criticism or flattery. They know their purpose and vision, which is their foundation. In other words, they know who they are and they know their why.

By Melinda Fouts for Forbes.com (Source Link).