The things we do in life are geared
towards productivity. Whether it is the need to get a promotion in our work
place, improve our business sales, get married or get good grades. We all want
to be successful in life and be productive in all of our endeavors. Life is
only as we make it and that which we get out of life is simply the effort we
put in it.
Many have associated excellence and
productivity as an input of academic intelligence alone. They believe that to
achieve the best in life, you need to excel academically. With this in mind,
they neglect the place of emotional intelligence in their lives. Only a few are
aware of emotional intelligence and amongst the few, just a few fraction take
into cognizance the implication of emotional intelligence in leading a
successful life.
Emotional intelligence is the ability
for one to identify his own emotions as they happen, understand them and manage
them as they happen. It involves being able to perceive not just your emotions
but the emotions of people around you. Now, one may wonder how emotional
intelligence enhances productivity; how our success in life is largely
dependent on a factor as emotional intelligence rather than academic
intelligence. This is so as we humans have emotions and function based on our
feelings.
As social beings, we feel love, hurt,
pain, joy, sorrow, the need to be loved and different other sensations. We have
moods that sometimes are believed to determine how we function. But then,
should our mood really determine how productive we should be? Should our mood
define when we should work or how we work? This is the essence of emotional
intelligence as it helps identify our emotions, understand them and manage them
as they happen.
Susan got back from work late and angry
on a Friday night. She and her roommate had plans to hit the club to celebrate
the promotion they both got in their workplace that month. Susan narrated her
ordeals on how work that day was terrible, longer hours in meeting she wasn’t used
to, traffic and long drive she had to endure and how famished she was.
Elizabeth, her roommate, in reply said, “oya
oya just change your wears lets hit the club. You weren’t the only one that
had a bad day at work”. Susan felt more depressed and eventually didn’t go
clubbing that night. Amaka had a day same as Susan and narrated same story to
her roommate. Her roommate already dressed immediately served her dinner and
told her they could leave the clubbing for another night. Eventually, they both
ended up at the club after a good meal and discussion.
From the story, not offering to help
doesn’t make Elizabeth a bad roommate but her failed responsibility in
identifying her roommates emotions and helping out makes her not so much of a
friend in need. Amaka’s roommate was able to put her friend’s emotions before
hers and was ready to sacrifice pleasure just for her friend to feel better. In
life, we face such situations every day. How we manage our emotions determine
how well we thrive in our activities.
There is need for one to be able to
identify his emotions and be able to interpret them. Just as important as it is
to identify one’s emotion, so also is it important to be able to identify the
cause behind the emotion. One might fail to be effective at a day’s work for a
particular reason. It might be either of two- whether he is hungry or angry
over something he hasn’t resolved. In such instance, if the true cause for low
productivity that day is hunger and he keeps working, he certainly will not
yield much that day. On the other day, if it is because of anger of what
someone did to him or anger for losing an auction, he still would be less
productive after a great meal if he fails to take into cognizance the real
reason for his low productivity.
To enjoy the best out of life, there is
need for self-awareness; being able to tell who you are and identifying your
emotions as they happen. Negative moods reduce your productivity and that can
only be checked when you are able to understand and manage your emotions. To be
effective in what one does, he must be able to cause himself to determine his
productivity rather than his mood. If you do not understand your emotions, you
cannot change it. To enjoy productivity in all one does in life, he must first
be self-aware, exercise self-control over his emotions, be socially aware
(understanding how others feel) and have the ability to build relationships.
About the Author
Ettoh
Oghenekefe is a freelance writer and strategic innovator who creates ideas and
contents that help impact the lives of people. He is passionate about helping
the young ones grow with the right frame of mind and believes there is no age
too young for self-discovery. He also is a Risk Managing Specialist and
Financial Planner and hopes that every individual can be as diligent in their
spending and savings as they are to their jobs and businesses
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