In today's fast-paced world, effective leadership is crucial for the success of any organisation. While technical skills and expertise are essential, there is another key ingredient that sets great leaders apart: emotional intelligence. Leaders who possess high emotional intelligence not only excel in their own personal growth but also foster an environment where employees can thrive and contribute their best.

What is emotional intelligence?

There are many definitions of emotional intelligence, with it often being confused as a personality trait such as being pleasant, agreeable or nice. While emotionally intelligent people can indeed have these traits, it is how someone understands and reacts to their own emotions and that of others which makes them emotionally intelligent.

There are 5 categories of emotional intelligence, and the best leaders are often cited as possessing each of these:

1. Self-awareness

Self-awareness is recognising and understanding your own emotions, strengths, weaknesses, values, and motivations. It includes being able to assess your emotional state and how it influences your thoughts patterns and behaviour.

Tip: Feel your feels. Don’t avoid your emotions, instead when you feel something, ask yourself ‘how am I feeling right now?’. Give your emotion the focus it needs to experience and understand it, then mindfully move on and let it go.

2. Self-regulation

We all have those moments when emotions threaten to take the wheel. Once you are aware of your emotions, self-regulation will help you steer them in the right direction. It's about managing your feelings and making sure your behaviour is a suitable response, rather than emotional reaction. As a leader, this skill helps you stay cool, calm, and collected in high-pressure or difficult situations.

Tip: Next time you are faced with a negative emotion, don’t dwell in negative behaviour. Research has shown that engaging in positive coping mechanisms helps regulate negative emotions so you can make better decisions and constructive judgements. These include humour, optimistic thinking and reframing perspective.

3. Motivation

Motivation is how driven you are to propel yourself, your team or business forward based on your internal values and needs, rather than by external factors such as money and rewards.

Tip: Push external factors to the side and try to identify the internal values and needs that propel you forward. You can do this as your practice emotional awareness. When you experience both positive and negative emotions at work ask yourself: What is the emotion I’m feeling? What does this emotion tell me about what I value? What does this emotion tell me about what I need? Once you understand your internal motivations, set goals which play to them.

4. Empathy

Empathy is how you understand and share the emotions of others. It involves being sensitive to others' needs and perspectives, and demonstrating genuine care and compassion.

Tip: As a leader, active listening is a great skill to help you develop and demonstrate empathy. Ask open questions, listen with intent and look for non-verbal queues such as facial expression and body language which communicate how a person might be feeling.

5. Social skills

Emotional intelligence is more than just understanding your emotions and those around you. It’s how your recognition of emotions translates into your interactions with others as well. As a leader, this includes how effectively you communicate with your team, resolve conflict and maintain relationships with your colleagues at all levels of business.

Tip: Focus on building positive relationships by showing genuine interest in those around you. On a personal level you can do this by asking questions and listening to people’s stories to find common ground. On a professional level, practice your critical communication skills such as giving effective feedback, approaching confronting conversations and leading with influence rather than authority.

As you work to become more emotionally intelligent, remember that the impact of emotional intelligence extends far beyond you as an individual. Leaders with high emotional intelligence often radiate positivity and understanding, creating a ripple effect through their personal and professional lives. Their influence inspires others to embrace their own emotional intelligence, creating a nurturing environment where growth, collaboration and innovation flourish.