Emotional and Social Intelligence is the capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions effectively in ourselves and in others. It describes the behaviors that sustain people in challenging roles, or as their careers become more demanding, and it captures the qualities that help people deal effectively with change. It consists of four distinct areas of ability: Self-Awareness, Social Awareness, Self-Management, and Relationship Management.
Emotional Self-Awareness involves recognizing how your emotions affect your performance, knowing your abilities and limits, being honest with yourself regarding your strengths and weaknesses, opening yourself up to feedback, and being able to laugh at yourself.
Self-Management allows us to both manage and motivate ourselves. As a management force it covers our emotional self-control, allowing us to keep our emotions and impulses in check, and our adaptability, our ability to be flexible in the face of change. As a motivational force it helps us strive to exceed a standard of excellence (Achievement Orientation) and promotes a positive outlook, which aids us in persisting in the pursuit of our goals despite the obstacles we face and the setbacks we encounter.
Social Awareness is two-fold. It involves both empathy, or the ability to sense others’ feelings and perspectives and taking an interest in their concerns, and organizational awareness, reading the emotional currents of a group and the power relationship within that group’s structure.
Relationship Management is the aspect of emotional intelligence that allows us to make a difference. It can affect whether our influence over others is positive or negative, give us the potential to be inspiring and guiding leaders, inspire us to take an active interest in the development needs of others and coach/mentor them to bolster their abilities and help them reach their potential, give us the tools to negotiate with others and resolve conflicts, and empower us to work with others toward a shared goal.
Sign-Up To Take Your Emotional Social Competency Inventory
The ESCI (Emotional Social Competency Inventory) is used to help an individual drive their own personal development to improve interpersonal effectiveness, develop leadership skills, and create more emotionally intelligent and effective organizations. To take a sample ESCI, or to learn more about Emotional Intelligence, please fill out the form below.