Emotional intelligence

With decades behind in the management of human capital or resources, it is my firm view that management is eighty percent docked in 'emotions' and only a mere quarter or thereabouts is real brass tacks. This piece is not about a management that is emotional,but about how a leader/manager or management should handle the emotions of their staff.

The dictionary meaning of emotions is: "a strong feeling deriving from one's mood or relationship with others" ... an instructive and intuitive feeling not entirely based on reasoning, knowledge or facts. Management scientists and gurus coupled with psychologists continue to not research upon emotions. One particular research by Paul Ekman, suggests that there are basically six different emotions; sadness, happiness, fear, anger, surprise and disgust; against this, another body of research indicates and believes, that there are actually eight different types of emotions: trust, fear, surprise, sadness, disgust, anger, anticipation and joy. Since it is a thought under construction and development, there is neither unanimity nor universal acceptance on what actually constitutes emotions? It is essentially therefore a pot pourri of all types of feelings and emotions, inclusive of the cited ones, that pervade and are prevalent in cultures, societies and organisations alike .

In today's fast paced world of business, leaders are expected to possess a high sense and a deep degree of skills relating to the management of human emotions. The presence of a heightened sense of EQ content over IQ in the persona of the leader/manager has become Netherlands most desirable of the skill(s) to be had. It is all about the readiness, the skill, and the ability to recognise and accept, for a meaningful control over feelings of oneself or of others, is often referred to as "emotional management".

Most problems that arise in interpersonal relationships are anchored in the deep recess of ignorance about how significantly our relationship is impacted. Managers in the midst of running business affairs often lose touch with the softer aspects of human resource. This detachment, if it persists for long years, leads to an untimely and ultimately a corporate divorce; hence rendering such types of managers to be classified as intolerable, ruthless and harsh.

All men and women go through various moods during the course of any working day. Some days are good, while some are not. The emotions arising from these two extremes and opposite feelings need to be firstly recognised, and later be adequately managed. Any allowance for the positive or negative emotions to hold sway over everyday behaviour at the office or even in personal lives, can drive deep divisions within ranks and relationships.

The ability to subjugate feelings leads towards the management of emotions. The likelihood of achieving success in the effort is dependent upon, not merely the control over the emotions of one's own anger, but also of other followers (teammates). The need for having an attitude of accepting a dissenting point of view, or the willingness to alter, amend and change one's own thoughts is a prerequisite for successful management of emotions.

Human responses to events and situations reflect inner emotions. These emotions in turn influence and impact behaviour of response and reaction. Since emotions of the six, eight or more types are in a state of fluidity, they overlap in our daily lives and responses while working. We are all used to seeing that, sharing is followed by appreciation; anger with affection; embarrassment with acknowledgement, etc. and these states of emotions help us to alter our reactions to the dynamic and changing situations, circumstances or sometime within the same design of the event.

The realigning ability to a new, fresh and different thought pattern is what matters to team members and the leadership. At our work stations there are numerous situations when our emotions get stoked, for worse mostly than for better. Stressful environments arising out of lack of achievement of business goals; transfers and postings, golden handshakes, unjust dismissals, etc contribute in provoking reactions that are prone to uprising the negative emotions. How the leader reacts and manages in such situations, determines the state of maturity of the management. If the manager yells, shouts, be- littles, misbehaves, throws tantrums or uses foul language for the event or the team member, the leader/manager then completely fails the test.

Leaders with a strong sense of maturity do not let their emotions run amok in their daily grind of managing business. They remember that only a calm disposition can weather out any type of storm in relationship management. Silence is a very effective weapon to quell the uprising of emotions.

Stressful environment is the number one enemy of a stable emotional base. The nature of anxiety will usually find its reflection in the manner emotions are conveyed or displayed. Mishandling of emotional reactions puts at risk the professional and personal reputation of the manager/leader. Before losing a shirt in public it is best to remember that an angry man is an ugly man. So why risk and show the demons residing inside! The need to learn techniques and to appreciate the ability to overcome uncontrollable emotions based on responses received cannot be understated. A stable and Pacific calm is a dire quality that all leaders must possess and demonstrate.

Recognition and management of emotion is encapsulated within the meaning of emotional intelligence or said algebraically, emotional quotient must be greater than intelligent quotient. Emotional intelligence is a trait where the manager is able to identify his/her emotions and also with equal dexterity feel and relate to the emotions of the teammates . They must remain on the same plane. The two sets of emotions must conjoin, for if they get into conflict, it seriously impairs the development of trust , faith and confidence, which are an absolute necessity for a congenial working environment. One must first judge one's own feelings before starting anything that is hurtful or has the potential to be misunderstood.

Emotional management must expunge any value given to personal ego. All the ailments of ego must remain jettisoned to ensure a just and rationale based response. This is not to suggest that self esteem should be compromised. It must be protected tooth and nail. Most managers confuse self esteem and ego, and hence become victims of egotism.

Self awareness of the importance of emotions at work stations, allows for better understanding of the emotional make-up of coworkers. A mature and emotionally stable management will douse the worst workplace conflicts; however, an immature one does inflict greater damage. Emotionally stable management is laid on the foundation of a strong sense of empathy -- lack of it, leads to disenchantment with corporate objectives, disillusionment backed by disdain for the organisation.

In order to be a successful manager it is imperative to hone complete command over emotions. A recognition of its importance enables greater focus and productivity; the manager has to be alert to the emotional needs of colleagues, failing which he/she may not get their full and dedicated participation.

The writer is a senior banker and a freelance columnist