Questions to Ask to Determine Emotional Intelligence

We have previously written about how emotional intelligence is essential for business. It can help you become a better worker and leader. It can help you identify the same winning traits in others. E.I. can even help you develop these traits to their maximum potential. To help you maximize this essential virtue, we have gathered six questions to ask to determine emotional intelligence.

1. Are You Good Under Pressure?

Everyone can be happy go lucky when things are going great. What about when things go as bad as they can? Do you remain cool, calm, and collected? Have others looked to you for guidance? Do you voluntarily offer solutions rather than assign blame? On the traverse side, do others avoid you when disaster happens? Do they get to work without you? Just remember that a good rule to a situation full of pressure is “Solve it now. Panic later.”

No pressure. No diamonds – Thomas Carlyle

2. Do You See Your Team as the Problem?

Leaders expect a lot from their workers and can push them to achieve the desired goal. Do you blame the team? Maybe it’s you. Do you have preferences, reactions, biases, and even unreasonable goals that are keeping your team from succeeding?

3. Is Vulnerability a Weakness?

You may feel uncomfortable when you admit to a shortcoming, such as being mentally compro-mised, tired, frustrated, in need of a break, especially if it is superior. You were taught to stay calm and persevere. But what if that isn’t possible at the moment? Expressing a vulnerability honestly is a benefit.

Admitting a vulnerability can give you a breath of fresh air, help you relax, and is essential to be-ginning the recovery process. No one has the answers 100% of the time. Vulnerability can allow you to admit you need help, seek it, and solve the issue.

4.Do You Know the Difference Between Stress and Burnout?

We’ve all felt both. However, the line between the two can be difficult to spot. Stress can be healthy, but burnout is a disaster. You may notice the difference between the two when the stress begins to change who you normally are. Are you getting frustrated more often than usual? Is the negativity creeping in more constantly? Do you find yourself unable to see the positive side? You may be on the burnout side of stress and need to step back.

5. How Much Restraint Do You Have?

Restraint can be a tumultuous thing. For example, let’s say one of your team members made a careless yet costly mistake. Restraint can keep you from saying something impulsive and unpro-ductive. In this example, restraint can also keep you from saying something valuable and relevant to the situation.

Just remember that when deciding when to exercise restraint, it is essential to step back, take a breath, and consider your options.

When restraint and courtesy are added to strength, the latter becomes irresistible. – Mahatma Gandhi

6. What Color Are Your Glasses?

You may think of the parachute color exercise when asking yourself this. However, this question for emotional intelligence refers to the color you see the world through. Here are a few examples:

• Rose colored glasses. These are people who see the bright side of everything, which isn’t al-ways a bad thing.
• Red colored glasses. These are people who see the dark side of everything, which isn’t al-ways a bad thing. However, they can tend to overgeneralize, as can rose-colored glasses.
• Clear colored glasses. These are people who see the bright and dark side of everything, which is what high emotional intelligence does. High E.I. individuals see (and balance) the good and bad in everything even if neither is favorable.

Wrapping Up Our Questions to Ask to Determine Emotional Intelligence

These are just a few of the questions to ask to identify emotional intelligence characteristics in yourself and others. Once you have a baseline, you will be able to improve on them. Remember that you also can improve your own E.I. and others with a professional’s help. Remember, your E.I. needs time and guidance to improve, just as all things do. Be sure to take time out regularly to work on it.

Building a highly productive team is difficult. Fortunately, KM Consulting can provide tools and expertise to help privately held companies. Here is the first step.