Post Date December, 03 2023
Is EQ really more important than IQ in the workplace?
To survive and succeed in business, you need to be tough. In the battle between heart and brain, the brain should be the winning party. But this is not the success model we are used to. Over the past 15 years, the dominant theory of success has been that successful people are not necessarily the smartest, but they must be the ones with the highest emotional intelligence. But is this true? The biggest lie in the workplace is that your EQ is more important than your IQ!
Six months ago, I first met a young woman. At that time, she had already started her own business. She is very intelligent, charming, and very understanding. Her 20 employees also admire her. She understands the win-win approach and always encourages teamwork. I think it's great! This is the so-called female management charm: higher emotional intelligence, less confrontation. This is also what a successful company should look like in the future.
Three years later, I met her again. This time, she looked particularly difficult. She told me that she was too much entangled in the lives of employees; For those employees who perform poorly, she has not been able to regulate or resign their positions in a timely manner. She is tired of making herself a likeable leader.
"Now, I don't care if they like me anymore. I'm in charge, and they need to know that. I only care about one thing, my company needs to survive!"
Collet has learned to become a hardline leader. To survive and succeed in business, you need to be tough. In the battle between heart and brain, the brain should be the winning party. But this is not the success model we are used to. Over the past 15 years, the dominant theory of success has been that successful people are not necessarily the smartest, but they must be the ones with the highest emotional intelligence.
But is this true?
Adrian Furnham, a professor of psychology at the University of London, believes: "Facts have proven that people with bad temper are more likely to become good leaders. The biggest lie in the workplace is that emotional intelligence is more important than your intelligence."
A German study found that women who have a good temper earn 40000 euros less in their lifetime than women who have more masculine traits.
It can even be said that emotional insensitivity is a trait to be proud of. Not long ago, one of London's most famous entrepreneurs, Jon Moulton, said that the most important personality trait that helped him succeed was insensitivity. He is right. Insensitivity at work is a powerful asset.
The biggest characteristic of high EQ is empathy. However, empathy can be the biggest obstacle to your career success.
Suzy Welch, a former editor at Harvard Business Review, said, "Too much compassion can be deadly. Especially when you have to make difficult personnel decisions or give feedback to others. This is especially true for women. They always want to appear as good mothers, and in the garden where they work, problems are planted."
Another characteristic of high EQ is self knowledge. And this is also very dangerous. Furnham believes that those who succeed are somewhat arrogant and narcissistic. This is a negative factor for women. Research shows that men are more likely to overestimate their abilities; However, women are the opposite. They underestimate and doubt themselves. Welch said, "Do we want a leader who doubts himself?" Successful managers rarely doubt themselves. Rather than talking about it, they would rather talk about sports.
High emotional intelligence is certainly not a bad thing. The important thing is that the emotional intelligence required is different at home and in the workplace.
At home, no matter how high the emotional intelligence index is, it's not too high; But in work, what is needed is that emotional intelligence is not too high. To succeed, you need to understand when to use your emotional intelligence and when to show your strong side. Welch said, "For me, high EQ simply means maturity. If that's all it means, then high EQ is certainly a good thing."
So, how do you use your EQ properly at work?
At work, neither be an ice queen nor a mother of the earth. Obviously, the former is better. But it's best not to do either. Ability and effectiveness are the most important.
Never cry in the workplace.
If you are not confident. Then you should do something that you are afraid of. You will find that they are not so scary.
4. Work with people who are emotionally opposite to you. If you're tough, find someone who has compassion. If you're soft, find a stronger one. Don't forget to ask them to remind you every time you become overly emotional.
If you want to do something cruel (fire employees and give negative feedback), remember to do it first. Don't delay! Bad news is best given in the first place!
Don't take the time to study whether you are good or not, try to understand your own behavior. Think about your own strengths, and then work on them. Don't criticize yourself too much.
7. Try to understand what role you have played in your team, and if there are difficulties, don't let someone else work with you to solve the problem.
