Emotional Intelligence 2.0 - Part 1 by Travis Bradberry

A business book that includes an online quiz and improvement strategies = engagement. This book begins with explaining the value of an individual's emotional intelligence "EQ" score vs their intelligence quotient "IQ" score. Something that fascinated me were the metrics and statistics gathered by the authors. EQ is so critical; it accounts for 58% of performance in all jobs. Also, on a 100-point scale, every added EQ point adds $1,300.00 to an annual salary. In other terms, people with high EQ scores make an average of $29,000 more per year than people with low EQ scores. These statistics definitely peaked my interest.

What does emotional intelligence look like?

First we need to understand the four EQ skills which are:

1. Self Awareness - your ability to accurately perceive your own emotions in the moment and understand your tendencies across situations.

2. Self Management - your ability to use your awareness of your emotions to stay flexible and direct your behaviour positively.

3. Social Awareness - your ability to pick up on emotions in other people and understand what is really going on with them.

4. Relationship Management - your ability to manage relationships well and seeing the benefit of connecting with many different people, even those you are not fond of.

Once you understand these four EQ skills with clarity, you are asked to complete the online assessment tool. Now even with my overall score of 95, I was still provided with three strategies to improve my EQ score. I was asked to choose an EQ mentor that I feel is most gifted in the EQ skill I chose to improve on so that I can work with them directly over the next few months.

What's different about your IQ score and your EQ score is that a high EQ can be developed even if you weren't born with it, however it is like working on your biceps at the gym... it takes commitment, patience and time to accomplish. "Plasticity" is the term neurologists use to describe the brain's ability to change and it's not easy.

This is part one of my book report because the expectation now is to follow the strategies provided by the book in order to improve my EQ score before taking the quiz again and moving onto the next section of the book.

...to be continued.

Book Review by Alicia Bolton, President OutsourceHR.