Developing Emotional Intelligence

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I think emotional intelligence is one of the greatest assets anyone can have. It’s not that people with the highest degree of emotional intelligence are the ones that reach the greatest heights. I’m sure you can think of a bonified jerk or two in a position of power. However, I think that those with high EQ (vs IQ) are happier and more effective at their jobs. And, the jerks aside, they often achieve more than their equally talented but less mature colleagues.

A high EQ is especially important for marketers. When sales are down, sales says that “marketing didn’t give us enough leads” or “we don’t have the right messages” or some other criticism that deflects the blame off them and squarely on to marketing. (Marketers, don’t get smug, there’s often lots of blame to go around.)

And, some days it seems that everyone thinks they are a natural born marketer. Just try naming a product or creating a new logo and you’ll see what I mean. Everyone from the CEO to the front desk receptionist is likely to have an opinion.

A high EQ will get you through these times without creating additional conflict. And, working with emotional intelligence can help you make the right decision about the product name, the new logo and all the other decisions that marketing has to make.

A fellow marketer recently asked me what books on emotional intelligence I would recommend. Hint: as an expressive, passionate, type A personality I have spent my career working on my own EQ. Here’s a list of some of the resources that might be helpful.

Working with Emotional Intelligence – Daniel Goleman has a series of books about emotional intelligence. I read Working with Emotional Intelligence several years ago and enjoyed it immensely. The book is a bit analytical, but if you like to dig into a subject from a more scientific perspective, I think you will enjoy it.

No Workplace Bullies – I just ran across Catherine Mattice’s blog a few days ago. She’s a good writer and her advice seems sound. I'm looking forward to participating in the conversations on her blog.

Dinosaur Brains – A fun and quick read by Albert Bernstein that is full of tips on dealing with difficult people at work. Sometimes you just need to smile and putting all those annoying traits in lizard terms can help.

The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t. This book by Robert I Sutton is on my “must read” list, but I haven’t gotten to it just yet. The title alone was enough to hook me but it’s also highly rated on Amazon.

News Flash – Given that I have this book on my “must read” list I thought I’d check to see if the author has a blog. What author doesn’t? You can read Bob Sutton’s blog at Work Matters and find enough books in his Good Books list on the left hand side to keep you reading for a long, long time.

If you have books on emotional intelligence that you found helpful, let me know!