According to Psychology Today, emotional intelligence refers to the ability to manage and identify the emotions of others as well as one’s own emotions. There are three skills associated with emotional intelligence: the ability to harness emotions and apply them to tasks such as problem solving, the ability to identify and name one’s own emotions, and the ability to both regulate one’s own emotions when appropriate and simultaneously helping others do the same.  I believe the most significant aspect of emotional intelligence from the five pillars is social skills.  For an individual to have healthy social skills, one must be able to communicate and interact with others in verbal and nonverbal ways.  This specific skill, social skills, encompasses the other pillars of emotional intelligence: self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, and empathy.  Emotional intelligence is an excellent skill for not only one’s individual success, but for the success of the entire group.  For example, I had to complete a group project with 5 other individuals.  Each person was assigned a specific part of the project and my portion was a bit more complex, where I had to interpret the results of a biological phenomenon I had no prior knowledge to.  I felt defeated and thought I was going to let my group down by not fully comprehending my section. Fortunately, we received assistance from an expert on the subject.  He understood the difficulty I was experiencing and was more than helpful by guiding my thought process to successfully present the project.  My groupmates were supportive as well.  The professor’s emotional intelligence was refreshing because he did not belittle me and he met me at the level I was at so I could succeed.  My groupmates did not grow impatient and frustrated with me, which made me more motivated to excel.

@gfashaw You equated emotional intelligence with teaching very well. I teach 7th-grade science to a larger population of students that require individual needs. Completing social-emotional exercises with the students gives me a broad picture of their needs daily. With this new teaching environment, the needs of the students change daily. I have had training and understanding with differences in how emotions are understood and appear at their level. Emotional intelligence creates an additional layer of understanding of the individuals around you. This skill is needed in multiple sectors. People have to work together in teams, and when the project manager is emotionally intelligent, the team members are better understood and the project faces better success overall. 

Emotional intelligence is more than necessary in a professional setting because it affects all interpersonal interactions with coworkers, subordinates and superiors. It is a crucial trait to have in a project management team because without regard to peoples emotions it can be hard to be empathetic and have a sense of perspective. This can lead to resentment and other issues in a team and on a personal level that can hinder growth, communication and ultimately the success of a relationship, project or product. 

First and foremost, I appreciate the fact that emotional intelligence is considered and taken seriously in project management. As you stated, it can make or break a team which is absolutely correct. I have had quite a few experiences where I had to evaluate my emotional intelligence when working on a project and it is usually due to my empathetic personality. When people are not able to fulfill their portion of a project and then explain why, I tend to put myself in their shoes and understand. Life in general.... is life so I completely understand when a person is going through something. Although, if it is the same individual consistently having issues, this is when my "emotional intelligence" kicks in and I become aware. Projects are serious business. If a person is not able to complete their duties in a project, to a certain extent, they must be replaced which can therefore lead to a successful or unsuccessful project. I think the most important area is definitely having social skills. Being able to communicate effectively can make or break a project. Also being able to communicate with respect, understanding, and kindness is important in order to keep a balanced team on hand. 

The business climate in the COVID era has changed and to optimize project results, while simultaneously maximizing use of resources it is necessary and timely for project managers to understand and apply the principles of emotional intelligence competencies empathy, intuition, leadership and teamwork and self control I believe are the hallmarks of emotional intelligence when working in a project setting. It is an action performed by a team towards a common goal.

To answer this question.

As a teacher, I must evaluate my emotional intelligence all the time. The job requires me to do so because I am around people all the time. We teachers, are often push to our brink on emotional healthiness because we give so much throughout the day. Being in the profession is often exhausting and affects a lot of communication skills outside of the school. We are so drained that our personal relationships and friendship suffers due to our emotional state. Some people become overly emotional, and many become nonchalant. Do you think that this is a safe work environment? Would you work here for 15 years with no raises? I think the most important areas of the 5 is empathy, because many lack. I can even say that our government lacks empathy.  Just look at the pandemic, where is the empathy from the people to put on mask and stand 6 feet apart? Where is the empathy with African Americans and slavery? Empathy.  

I truly value this post because @mam289 is speaking nothing, but truth.  Emotional intelligence, in the work place, is definitely looked over as an asset to have.  Without emotional intelligence, the relationship between co-workers is combative and dysfunctional.  It is very arrogant and unrealistic of a person to say they can leave their emotions at the door, and that work, and co-workers, does not tamper with their emotions to some degree.

I often find myself having to evaluate my emotional intelligence when working with groups of people.  At my job, everything we do is a team effort, and one of my team mates was on a mission to make me seem like I was not contributing to the effort.  Being that I do not like feeling like I'm not pulling my weight, I questioned her to see what I could do better and it only got worse.  It put me in a bad place emotionally because it seemed like no matter what I did, there was always something.  I had to pull it together and talk to my supervisor calmly and honestly to ask what is he noticing that I can improve on since I could not get a response from my co-worker. Since then, my rapport with my supervisor and work has been way better because I decided to seek the criticism I needed to get better.    

I think empathy is the most important area of emotional intelligence because if we are able to empathize with each other, we can better help them without having feelings of distain and anger and resentment for that person who sometimes fall short.  Empathy is important because understanding that no one is perfect and some mistakes are bound to happen allows you to be more understanding and compassionate.  Understanding and compassion will allow you to get over someone falling short once in a while on a project because you know that they are truly stressing/ spread thin outside of the project and that is why their performance is a little lack-luster this time, but they are committed to getting it right the next time. Essentially ,giving people a chance to be imperfect allows everyone to be free of the stress of having to be perfect which takes some stress off the person which in turn allows for the person want to work harder to contribute to the team.

Emotional intelligence is defined as the ability to perceive, use, understand and manage emotions. As a project manager, having this ability will not only allow for enhanced communication among your team but will also allow for project managers to deal more effectively with challenges as they arise. Understanding how to use the principles of emotional intelligence to garner a positive environment will cause team members to be motivated to their highest potential. Although natural for some, this is a learned skill. Courses on this subject matter should be taken to enhance team awareness and in return optimize project results.

I think you nailed on it the head. Self-awareness is critical when interacting with other people energies. I believe when it comes to working with people there must be a flow of understanding as well as a give and take of power. Being self-aware of understanding other people egos, put you in a better position of knowing how to handle the situation. Letting go of your EGO and the need to prove people right puts you in a better place with handling your emotions as well.

@sromemsm-edu 

I've had the luxury of being on many different teams where I used to work and a part of that is meeting and working with new people almost every day. Most of which, I would not have known or gotten to know outside of work. But what I did realize amongst all the meetings and team transitions is that everyone has different ways of doing things. My way is not always the best way at completing the task, and likewise, neither is the other person's. I think rather than looking at it from a different perspective, I look at it from a learning perspective. I tend to think "what parts of their tactic can I incorporate into mine" as well as "will this part of my tactic help them achieve their goal in a better way?" This type of active questioning leads to a better output for your team. Because of this type of thinking, all my projects have been successful and I still have good relations with many of the individuals on the teams. It was all because we all sought better ways of completing our tasks to help us grow as a team.

I believe empathy is the most important because people tend to compartmentalize their life. Work-life balance always is a hot topic in the corporate world. Between all this, we forget that we are all human and make mistakes and we all have other lives outside of work. I firmly believe this to be an important quality as you never know what anyone is going through at any given moment. Additionally, showing empathy in times of need only strengthens bonds between staff as well as improves team dynamics.

I think emotional intelligence is often neglected in education for several reasons including the lack of awareness here has limited awareness and understanding of the significance of emotional intelligence in the academic community, leading to a lack of emphasis on its development and integration into the curriculum or technical focus as the education system has historically placed a higher value on technical and cognitive skills, leading to a focus on subjects like math, science, and engineering, at the expense of social and emotional development. Also unlike technical skills, emotional intelligence is difficult to measure and quantify, making it challenging to integrate into an education system that emphasizes standardized testing and quantifiable outcomes.

Despite these challenges, there has been a growing recognition of the importance of emotional intelligence in success, and some educational institutions are starting to incorporate EI training into their curricula. However, there is still much work to be done to fully integrate EI into the education system and ensure that all students receive the training and support they need to develop their emotional intelligence.

In general, emotional intelligence refers to the capability to understand and control emotions effectively. Basically, emotional intelligence can give considerable benefit and help in developing one’s carrier in the workplace within the organization. It can also help in developing better connections and encouraging a positive work environment. It is also known as the emotional quotient (EQ). The components of emotional intelligence to mention are:

• Self-regulation: it is the capability to manage and alter one’s emotions to develop positive effects. It is important for any individual to control his feelings in any situation because they can affect other people. So, one must control feelings in the workplace to maintain as a professional in the organization.
• Self-awareness: self-awareness is the capability to identify one’s emotions and emotional activities. It is crucial to know about his own emotions which helps him to understand how other individuals may perceive his emotions. One must use self-awareness at the workplace to recognize how he is considered by the co-employees, clients, and managers.
• Motivation: motivation pertains to emotional intelligence since your wishes might foster various sentiments about something. It's the drive and desire to accomplish something. A desire to effectively finish all of your daily activities, for instance, might be exhibited as intrinsic motivation to your employer as well as a means of achieving your own inner wants and goals.
• Empathy: The capacity to recognize and comprehend another person's feelings is known as empathy. You may manage workplace circumstances more skillfully if you are aware of people's emotions. For instance, you can respond empathetically when a coworker exhibits indications of dismay to prevent a situation from getting worse.
• Social skills: To engage and communicate with others, one needs social skills. You can listen, communicate, and handle problems more skillfully if you have greater social skills, such as effective communication and respect. Social skills are crucial leadership qualities that may be employed in the workplace to advance your career.

During my last semester, I was working on a project for my Capstone group to help build a medical device that would help veterans who complain of shortness of breath. Since this class is a 2 semester project, I hoped that I would be with people who are  hardworking and organized so that we can be successful. I was put in a group with 4 people that I didn't really know too well and we had been acquaintances throughout college. When working with the team, I realized that I had to work on my social skills so that we can better communicate our tasks and responsibilities. Our project became complex quickly and I knew we had to be comfortable disagreeing with each and have civil conversations on which technique is the best. To get us more comfortable with each other, we began to spend time with each other outside of school so that we can get to know each other in a different setting. This slowly, but surely helped us become more efficient and we currently have a prototype for our project. I also believe that all of the 5 areas of emotional intelligence are important in their own way. Each aspect of emotional intelligence peaks out more in specific situations depending on the problem or challenge. I do not think that one is more important than the other because they often overlap and they come hand in hand.

We were a group of three with a project due imminently. The other group member and I were working on it, although we hadn't heard from the other, regardless of how many times we contacted them. We had almost put the member's name out of the project, but eventually, they responded and told us they were going through personal issues. We both realized that everyone has different things going on in their lives, and we ended up being considerate of their situation.

I think awareness is probably the most important given that you have to understand the approach from another individual. There might be some conservations where you won't understand where the other is coming from or you might awkwardly say things, but being aware of it can help you overcome some situations.

From my experience, limited mostly to class assignments, I've noticed that projects that I've worked on in teams that mesh well together in terms of personalities produce more successful, higher quality work. I think that this is due to all of us feeling safe enough to call each other out when something is not up to par or work is being turned in late. In projects that I've been where there is no personality synergy, there have been many miscommunications, no matter how many times or what you did to prevent it. 

I think that all 5 areas of emotional intelligence are important. If I had to choose one though, I would probably say that social skills is probably most important. With effective communication, projects could be completed regardless of any personality clashes. If there are problems, they could be effectively voiced and worked on before a larger problem comes out of it.