| The most recent NexusEQ Conference included | | | | the "self-esteem movement" treat positive emotions |
| delegates from over 100 disciplines and 37 nations | | | | and "feeling good" as something magical or |
| gathered in Holland to see how emotional intelligence | | | | transcendental. Somewhere along the road, the current |
| improves leadership. On EQ.org, more and more | | | | incarnations of EST, Forum, Tea Groups, and Essalon |
| practitioners are appearing from all over the world. | | | | still act like emotions are a barrier that must be "broken |
| Google News has stories about EQ every day. It all | | | | through" with intense feeling and catharsis to arrive at |
| goes to show that emotional Intelligence is of interest | | | | true understanding. |
| to a wide and growing audience. But what do we | | | | Part of the revolutionary value of EQ is a new |
| mean by "emotional intelligence" -- is it just a nice way | | | | perspective on emotions that's truly different from |
| of talking about concepts that have been popular for | | | | other views. From the EQ perspective, emotions are a |
| decades? Or is there really a new concept to | | | | functional, adaptive source of information and energy - |
| explore? | | | | they are understandable, measurable, and practical. |
| Part of the vision of these world conferences is to find | | | | Thinking and feeling are two notes of the same chord. |
| a shared understanding, a common vision, which is | | | | Perhaps behavior is a third note. In this view, emotions |
| challenging in an emerging science. There are many | | | | are part of intelligence - part of cognition. Both are |
| different theorists, many different practitioners, and | | | | biological processes and inseparable from our physical |
| many different models. So rather than choosing one | | | | selves. |
| specific model, the NexusEQ conferences work to | | | | As far back as Darwin (and maybe before), scholars |
| bring out research and practice that values the power | | | | have proposed that emotions help us survive. Going |
| of emotions as a driving force in our capacity for | | | | several steps further, we now know emotions are a |
| wisdom. In this view, "Emotional intelligence" is different | | | | basis for group interaction, they give us critical |
| from "emotional," different from humanism, different | | | | information about others and about ourselves, they |
| from openness, different from caring, different from | | | | influence thinking and even create our very |
| consciousness, and even different from emotional | | | | consciousness. They cannot be meaningfully isolated |
| literacy. While there are many forms of psychology, | | | | from "thinking," and it's meaningless to say one comes |
| self-awareness, and personal growth that deal with | | | | first and the other is a result. There are no "bad" or |
| emotions, that does not mean they are informed by | | | | "irrational" emotions, though there are emotions we |
| the science of emotional intelligence. One key | | | | don't understand and many we express |
| differentiator is how people define the role and function | | | | inappropriately. To be intelligent with our emotions, we |
| of emotions. In most of psychology emotions are | | | | must recognize and attend to them respectfully and |
| identified as a symptom, an artifact, an aberration, or a | | | | intentionally. Emotional intelligence is an emerging |
| coincidence (even in "emotion-friendly" disciplines such | | | | science; we are living on the cutting edge, and this |
| as Positive Psychology, Neuro-Linguistic Programming, | | | | creates some confusion. The plurality of models, |
| Emotional Freedom Technique, Constellation Therapy, | | | | theories, and views is a sign of a healthy debate as |
| and Transactional Analysis). Emotion is seen as | | | | different scholars and thought-leaders test the |
| secondary, sometimes even as dysfunction. Generally | | | | boundaries of this new field of study. In the last two |
| speaking, psychological approaches say, "Thinking is | | | | decades there have been tremendous advances in |
| King," and emotion is a byproduct (as is behavior). | | | | our understanding of the intelligence of emotions - and |
| Perhaps this is most clearly visible in Rational Emotive | | | | there is still much more to learn. |
| Therapy, which deals with emotions but treats them as | | | | The task you and I have is to find the jewels of value |
| artifacts of mistaken beliefs. | | | | amidst the bustle of new discovery and the hustle of |
| Another whole school of thought focuses on "Behavior | | | | marketing hype. As you learn about emotional |
| is King." This paradigm is almost insidious in the way it | | | | intelligence and as you find practitioners and allies to |
| creeps into management, parenting, and education. In | | | | support your implementation - keep the key principle in |
| this view, all we need to focus on is behavior - and if | | | | mind. If you want the benefits of emotional intelligence, |
| we can "pull the right levers" (rewards and | | | | you've got to link up thinking and feeling as two |
| punishments), we can change any behavior. | | | | partners building a sustainable and prosperous alliance. |
| At the other extreme, some approaches arising from | | | | |