Why Emotional Intelligence Is Essential for Your Team

Nearly ninety percent of jobs require some form of teamwork, and it is becoming a necessary skill needed for many candidates. Those that began participating in team projects at school felt they had a definite advantage over their colleagues later on in life.

Despite being so important, many employees still struggle when working in a team. People who have difficulties with teamwork usually don’t appreciate the concept of Emotional Intelligence. If you are looking for ways to improve your organization, it would be worth understanding Emotional Intelligence (EI) and its impact on teams.

The Birth of Emotional Intelligence

It may surprise you that emotional intelligence is not a new concept. Scientists started investigating EI in 1920. In its youth, EI was considered to be Social Intelligence, and focused on the ability to understand other people and to “act wisely in human relations”. By 1940, scientists had separated intelligence into ‘intellective’ and ‘non-intellective’. EI was further divided into interpersonal intelligence (understanding others) and intrapersonal intelligence (understanding oneself).

What is Emotional Intelligence

Today, according to researchers, emotional intelligence is the ability to “monitor one’s own and other people’s emotions”. EI incorporates how we discriminate between different emotions and then how we use them to guide our thinking and behaviour.

Being able to spot people’s emotions within a team environment is critical for communication. Leaders who want to maximize their team’s productivity will need high levels of EI.  The importance of EI is even more crucial for transformational leadership—when leaders want to inspire positive changes in others.

Why is Emotional Intelligence essential for your team?

As a leader, you should continuously monitor the emotions of your team. It doesn’t take a psychologist to know that negative emotions like stress, envy, and exhaustion are going to cause issues among team members and affect productivity.

Let’s take a closer look at why emotional intelligence should become an integral part of your training program.

1. The amount of teamwork is increasing

According to a study by Cross, Rebele, and Grant in 2016, we spend at least 50% more time working in teams than we did 20 years ago. In the past, we may have been able to escape to our desks and work alone, but it’s not the case today.

2. Teamwork doesn’t come naturally

Each team member has a unique personality and reacts to various situations in different ways. One person may see something as humorous, while the next person can see it as offensive. As a leader, you can’t create a team, hand them a project, and expect them to work together. They need direction and education on how to work together.

3. Emotional intelligence fosters collaboration

Each team comprises of members with different skills. Some will be domineering, others will work harder, and there will be those that have great ideas but little confidence to speak up. Group emotional intelligence is about focusing on the small details, learning how to express tension, and treating each other respectfully.

4. EI allows for listening

If you want to be able to read social situations, you need to be able to listen to what is being said and how it is being said. As a leader, you will need to dedicate time to problem-solving, whether that’s with the project or the relationships between team members.

5. You don’t need to avoid difficult conversations

Regardless of how amazing your team is, there are always going to be difficult conversations. For example, people make mistakes, things could be done better, and tempers need to be dampened. If you are lacking EI, you will dread these conversations and even avoid them altogether. This will only make the situation worse, and you need to have a good handle of your own emotions to deal with these conversations.

6. Emotional intelligence encourages communication and collaboration within the whole company

The breakroom or canteen is a classic example when EI breaks down. We’ve all seen those huddles when each team sticks to its own. When your team has higher levels of EI, they will be able to break away from the team during free time and network with other teams in the company. More networking leads to more sharing of ideas and a more effective organization.

7. EI combined with TL leads to higher motivation and increased productivity

Emotional intelligence is vital for transformational leadership. Most researchers agree that transformational leaders enhance organizational performance. They are highly enthusiastic about their work and are motivational. They also display these emotions with great enthusiasm, and other team members absorb this atmosphere. These leaders have a higher quality of work, and their team members follow their example, increasing the quality of work carried out.