You have probably heard about IQ (Intelligence Quotient), a measure of cognitive intelligence. It is often used to assess a person’s ability to reason, learn, and solve problems. Emotional intelligence (referred to as EQ or emotional quotient) is the ability to identify, understand, and manage one’s own emotions, as well as to recognize and respond appropriately to the emotions of others. It involves skills such as empathy, self-awareness, and effective communication.
Emotional intelligence is important for personal and professional success, as it can help individuals build stronger relationships, make better decisions, and navigate social situations more effectively. For these reasons, it is the #1 key to success for both you and your child.
When we understand our own emotions, we are better able to regulate them.
If we feel angry and don’t understand why we’re angry, our outbursts and feelings become much more difficult to control. Identifying the root cause of our emotions helps us manage and communicate them effectively. We are able to move forward with positive coping mechanisms and emotional regulation rather than react in ways that damage relationships and increase our pain.
Ultimately, those with high levels of emotional intelligence have high levels of empathy.
Empathy is the ability to feel and experience someone else’s emotions.
Empathy is not feeling sorry for someone else; that is sympathy. Empathy is being able to understand and share in the feelings of others and respond in a compassionate and supportive way.
In Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird,” Atticus Finch tells his daughter Scout,
“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.”
Empathy is one of the most powerful thing we can learn in our life.
If we can increase our own ability to experience empathy, and teach our children to be highly empathic, it will prove to be significantly more important to their success than the number of AP classes, scholarships, or honors they receive.
Empathy and emotional intelligence influence leadership ability, social and emotional regulation, stress management, self-motivation, and healthy and productive functioning–all significantly more important predictors of future success than IQ.
You can read more about Simple Ways to Help Children Develop Empathy
As we practice empathy in these exercises, we will learn to slow down and see people as people. To realize at a deeper level that those we interact with on a daily basis have emotions, struggles, hopes, hurts, and dreams just like we do. And when we can see into their hearts, not only will we find it easier to treat them with more kindness and respect, but we will also find a greater sense of peace within ourselves.
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