By Safe Call Now®'s Steve Gutzler |
"Great leaders inspire us. They ignite the best
version of ourselves. Most importantly, they motivate us to accomplish our best
work and they make us feel important.
A leader who is capable of that inspiration and
motivation has a high degree of Emotional Intelligence. Here are the basic
competencies:
1. Emotional Self-awareness
- Leaders with high self-awareness are attuned to their inner signals,
recognizing how their feelings and moods affect them and those they interact
with daily.
2. Self-confidence
- Self-confident leaders take on challenging assignments.
They possess a sense of presence, poise, and self-assurance.
3. Emotional Self-management
- Leaders with emotional self-control find ways to manage their
challenging emotions and impulses. Staying calm and clear-headed is a hallmark
of a great leader.
4. Transparency - Leaders who
are transparent communicate their values and live them. They are open about
their feelings, beliefs, and choices. They are leaders who can admit
fault, apologize... and move forward.
5. Optimism - A leader with
optimism can quickly shift from a problem and convert it in to a challenge to
be solved. They see life through the lens of possibility and positivity. They
believe the future can and will be brighter.
6. Developing Others - Leaders who
are adept at cultivating abilities show a genuine interest in the success of
others. They ask about their goals, strengths, what they enjoy. These
leaders provide constructive feedback and lift the vision of those around
them to see the next level of what's possible.
Working with first responders, I find the #1 enemy to
personal leadership effectiveness is their ability to manage their emotions.
This is a challenge because of the stress hormone cortisol.
Leaders who fail to emotionally self-manage these
moments can sabotage their best efforts and put at risk key relationships with
team members and even their clients, affecting their bottom-line results. I've
worked hard over the past several years to partner one-on-one with leaders and
teams to ensure they play at their best and remain smart during stressful
encounters and challenging relationships.
To excel in your field and become an emotionally
intelligent leader, practice these 4 tips
1.
Make a strong first impression
a.
Smile sincerely
b.
Have extraordinary eye-contact
c.
Take genuine interest in others immediately
d.
Greet others with warmth, charm, and ease
2.
Lead the conversation toward their world not yours
a.
Enter conversations by asking sincere questions
b.
Treat them like the VIP they are
c.
Ask follow up questions rather than "one-up"
them with your opinions or stories
3.
Affirm their stories and actions
a.
Affirm their ideas and working solutions
b.
Affirm their unique personal drive
c.
Affirm their progress... point it out
d.
Affirm what's working, shine a light on it
4.
Work daily to self-manage your emotions
a.
Learn the power of not responding immediately
b.
Understand that emotional hijacking can last 18-20 minutes, take
time to breathe
c.
Learn to disengage so you can reengage more powerfully
d.
Don't treat yourself like a machine - take rest and recovery
seriously
The highest performing leaders work to improve their
Emotional Intelligence skills daily. Which tip will you choose to boost
and improve relationships and connections with others this week?"
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