I recently read the book Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman and I must say that it was the most informative book I have ever read. Emotional Intelligence can be defined as the “link between thoughts, feelings and reactions,” and the knowledge of how to respond to emotion. The two elements that define emotion are empathy and self-awareness. Self-awareness takes the form of “recognizing your strengths and weaknesses, and seeing yourself in a positive but realistic light.” While empathy is the ability to “understand others’ feelings and taking their perspective, and respecting differences in how people feel about things.” Both concepts of emotional intelligence play a role in the development of ones’ ability to manage emotions and learn how to handle them responsibly in relation to an individual’s mental health. Emotional Intelligence also discusses the importance of social intelligence vs. standard intelligence in how it is extremely important in defining how successful one can be. They say that “IQ gets you the job, but EQ gets you the promotion,” which I find to be true.
The book also dissects the balance in any relationship and the effects of an unhealthy relationship and methods in which a relationship can be improved upon. It discusses relationships of the romantic nature as well as platonic nature. The book is somewhat of a self-help book that gives a scientific approach to out mental well being, while giving instruction on how to better your relationships with people as well as with yourself. The book has information on how arguments can affect the brain, as well as the situations where emotional brilliance had been applied to demonstrate the effectiveness of each technique presented.
Emotional Intelligence has given me a lot in terms of how to handle situations in life but more importantly it has given me tools that I need to be successful in life both mentally and physically. One who defines success by the level of status, education, or material worth — it is unlikely we will actually ever be happy unless we are very aware of our specific feelings. In fact, it is quite possible to be successful and miserable. It is easy to accept without question other people’s definition of success and happiness. But when we become more aware of our own true and unique feelings we are more likely to find our own individual happiness. This may be the essence of using our emotional intelligence. To be successful is to be aware of our emotional state of mind and to be able to respond to the environment in which we live. Having read this book, I am much more aware of my mental state of mind and to help understand the human psyche I recommend reading it.
