Your emotional intelligence could be more important than your IQ

In the last few decades, researchers have been identifying specific things that make people successful and have shown top achievers see life and behave in ways that we can learn. They use a set of skills that we could loosely call intelligence - emotional intelligence.

Broadly speaking, our emotional intelligence is our ability to manage ourselves and our relationships. One study (by Hay/McBer) showed that emotional skills were twice as important as intellectual skills in determining excellence. Many observers say that your intellectual abilities, technical skills, qualifications and experience may get you the job, but your emotional intelligence will determine how far you are promoted,

Researchers disagree on how much the emotional skills contribute to success, but even the most skeptical we've come across recently, thinks they are probably as valuable as your intellectual and technical skills. You can't do much about your I.Q. but your can certainly increase your E.Q. (Your Emotional Quotient.)

Studies of major organisations in the United States show that the need for emotional intelligence grows with the complexity of the work. For success in the top levels of leadership, emotional skills are virtually the entire difference between outstanding leaders and mediocre ones.