The Four Mindsets

chapter 2 How to develop emotional intelligence: Step 1 — self-awareness

Research shows that a high level of self-awareness is fast becoming the number one skill required in the workplace by managers, leaders and high performers. Regardless of your industry, title or job description, if you are not self-aware, it is unlikely you will reach and sustain high levels of performance as a manager, realise your true potential or be able to help others in your team to do the same.

Self-awareness is commonly believed to be the cornerstone of emotional intelligence. Anyone charged with the responsibility of increasing performance levels and managing others must learn what it takes to become emotionally intelligent. And your starting point is self-awareness.

What does it mean to be ‘emotionally intelligent'? In Working with Emotional Intelligence, Daniel Goleman describes emotional intelligence as ‘the capacity for recognising our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions well in ourselves and in our relationships'. The idea has played a significant role in changing how people manage in today's workplaces and businesses. What complicates things is that this shift in management thinking is ongoing and many managers are still caught in the middle of the transition.

Traditionally a manager's role was seen as being ‘task based' and was measured primarily by the quality of their decision making, strategy application and task execution. Today these ...