Winston Churchill, Abraham Lincoln, Ronald Reagan, Jack Welch, Great leaders motivate us. They inspire us and ignite our passion. Have you ever wondered how? How do great leaders always get the job done and their employees/volunteers love or respect the leader for getting them to accomplish the work? Not only their employees, others aspire to know them and even to meet them personally. Perhaps thinking some of the leader’s charisma and wisdom will rub off. I am a strategic planner, and help leaders and organizations plan strategically. Yet, I know there is much more involved here than strategy. There is an element residing within all great leaders that is often overlooked by the majority.
This element involves passion. But it is not passion alone. I can be passionate about getting the job done. I can be passionate about making the organization money, or climbing the corporate ladder. I can be passionate about a lot of things, but this will not make me a great leader. In order to be a truly great leader I must possess what Daniel Goleman contends is, Emotional Intelligence (Primal Leadership, Harvard business School Press, © 2002).
We all know of I.Q., Intelligence Quotient. I want to introduce you to what I consider Emotional Intelligence Quotient (EIQ). The higher the level EIQ, the greater success a leader will experience. EIQ is not only about the level of your emotions. more importantly, it is the level at which you understand and can motivate the emotions of others. It is not manipulation. People resent manipulation and will not work for you as you desire when you try to manipulate them.
EIQ is understanding that every person is different and must be approached, managed, and led differently. To be productive each one of us must have our correct emotions engaged and caressed. Now, this does not mean you are to coddle and coo over employees or volunteers. It does involve getting to know your employees and learning about them, what brings them satisfaction; what motivates him to action? What causes her to strive for her best?
Everyone will serve out of his/her passion. We enjoy doing what we are passionate about. Leaders with high EIQ use observation and casual conversation to learn the passion and the emotional base driving the passion of each employee or volunteer. Yes, this requires spending time with people, which is level two leadership. Spending time with people, getting to know their passions and the emotions that drives their passion, will help move you to higher level leadership with your charges.
Many leaders are ignorant of or refuse to acknowledge the importance of practicing a high EIQ. Yet, for successful leaders it is a practice that becomes second nature. People serving high EIQ leaders will out-perform others three to one, every day of the week. Why would any leader ignore learning about and developing their own EIQ? Why have you?
To learn more about EIQ and how to develop yours, contact George Yates.
George Yates is a coach and church Health Strategist, assisting individuals and organizations in fulfilling their God-given purpose.