Social and Emotional Intelligence coaching and training is the most sought-after and in-demand form of personal and professional development in the world right now.

So, why is that?

People are social and emotional beings and even in a locked-down world, we all need to navigate our feelings as we go about our daily lives. It’s an essential part of being a human being really.

Think about the internal and external conflict you have experienced in the last few weeks. How did that affect the way you viewed the world and how you responded to what was going on around you?

Emotions are not something that you can just ignore or suppress. They need to be used “intelligently” in a way that is healthy for us and for those we interact with in our part of the world.

So, what is this thing called Social and Emotional Intelligence?

There are a lot of opinions out there as to what emotional intelligence is and what it isn’t. Even though I find this hard to believe, some people still have not even heard of it. Social and workplace conditioning has some people believing that it is just a “nice to have, soft skill” and that emotions have no place in the workplace.

Quite often we see people debating whether EQ, the universal measure of EI, is more important than IQ. Others get tied up by focussing on which comes first, the emotion or the feeling.

In my opinion, as someone who has studied and worked in this area for many years, we are still missing the point with these conversations.

People are emotional beings so they need to learn how to navigate their emotions.

^{Social and Emotional Intelligence is the ability to be aware of your own emotions, and the emotions of others - in the moment - and then to use that information to manage yourself and manage your relationships.}

So, let’s break that down.

• It is an ability

We are not ‘born’ or ‘not born’ with Emotional Intelligence. These are learned skills that we need to develop and hardwire into our brains. This can be done at any stage of life.

This is done by training and coaching in the 26 distinct competencies of social and emotional intelligence through a journey of 4 quadrants. Self Awareness, Self Management, Social Awareness, and Relationship Management.

By the way, I may be a subject matter expert in the area of social and emotional intelligence but I am still a daily work-in-progress in its implementation, just like you.

• It all starts with self-awareness

The first part of the journey is to develop an awareness for yourself.

This is done by pausing in the moment and reflecting by asking yourself logical questions to identify which emotion you are experiencing right then and there.

• It considers others as well

We interact with others every day so we need to be aware of what they ‘might’ be experiencing emotionally in the moment as well.

This is done by developing empathy, actively listening, and seeking to understand.

• Its only value comes in the implementation of what we learn

Just like taking action on this blog post, the only value that comes from self and others' awareness is found in what we do with it.

The second phase of the equation is to use the information that comes from awareness to manage how we respond. We need to learn new strategies to avoid reacting purely on emotion and respond in an appropriate way using logic. This is good for us, good for those around us, and good for the greater good.

• It is a critical component of maintaining healthy relationships

No matter what the world is going through right now, we are still living in a social world where relationships with others are the key to the quality of our experiences and the results we receive from life. Social skills are still required, especially with social distancing.

Learning how to communicate, inspire, handle conflict and the like, are so important to all of us. We might be living in an online world right now, but social and emotional intelligence is still relevant. I would even go so far as to say “even more so”.

Conclusion

Now that you know what social and emotional intelligence is, I am confident you will agree that it is something that we all need to have to better navigate this thing called life. It’s definitely not just nice to have. It is a crucial skill set that everyone needs to obtain.

So, how do we get this important message out there?

By becoming a social and emotional intelligence coach and trainer, you can give yourself the gift of developing these competencies for yourself, and make yourself available to train and coach others as well. The world needs more social and emotional intelligence coaches right now, and you can be one of them. You just need to step up to the plate and get involved. 

At People Builders Institute, we offer training, certification, and mentoring, for existing coaches and trainers, and for those people who are considering becoming a coach.

Whether this is something that you would like to do internally join your workplace or as a self-employed business owner, we can help you to make it happen.

To find out how you can join the movement of social and emotional trainers and coaches around the world, check out our self-paced and blended-delivery programs on our website, or reach out to me so I can answer your questions and help you start your journey as a social and emotional intelligence coach.