Right Fit Leading: Time to revisit emotional intelligence

As my colleague @LeslieKrohn and I work on a proposed journal article relating to an evaluation of mask wearing issues and answers, I am compelled to take another look at emotional intelligence.

Current events have taught us that wearing or not wearing a mask can be an emotionally charged decision, so we might also examine emotional intelligence. Cooper describes emotional intelligence (EI) as the ability to sense, understand, and effectively apply the power and acumen of emotions as a source of human energy, information, trust, creativity and influence (1997). Individuals with high levels of emotional intelligence are characterized by the ability to acknowledge and value the feelings that they have personally and that they can sense in others. Emotionally intelligent individuals then respond to those feelings in an effective way with a goal of saving time in human interactions by expanding opportunities to collaborate and by directing energies more effectively. Building trusting relationships, increasing energy and effectiveness, and creating the future are the three driving forces in EI. Research shows that emotional intelligence far outweighs IQ and raw brain power as the primary success factor in decision making, creating dynamic organizations, and achieving lifestyle satisfaction and success.