Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to understand and manage emotional encounters. Individuals who score highly on emotional intelligence tend to be better able to handle everyday stress, foster a greater number of meaningful close relationships, be more socially competent, and reach their goals and aspirations.
In my new program offering, The Compass: An Emotional Intelligence Program, our function in life is compared to the journey of a sailboat. In particular, the elements of the compass and the captain serve to demonstrate the use of emotions as data to the individual.
A compass is an instrument used for navigation and orientation that provides feedback on the current direction in which we are heading. In a similar vein, experiences like feelings, emotions, bodily sensations and intuition serve as a tool for navigation and orientation in our lives.
Both positive and negative experiences are signals that provide feedback on the route we are taking in life. They can serve as a valuable guide on our journey and provide us with key emotional data. For this reason, it is important to pay attention to them and allow them to be present.
The captain is the master of the boat and interacts with the compass, however, the captain is not the compass … just as you are not your emotions. The captain is the agent … the one who takes action.
An emotionally intelligent person can be compared to a captain who uses the compass of their boat wisely. For a compass to be of most value, the captain must be able to read it and use its feedback in a way that ensures a prosperous journey. Likewise, the emotionally intelligent person knows how to “read” emotions and manage them in a way that promotes well-being.
A person who has difficulty handling their emotions is like a captain who is unable to respond to the feedback from the compass and is not using the feedback in an adaptive way. Have you struggled with this yourself?
When it comes to positive emotions, an emotionally intelligent person uses them to speed up the creative process, similar to the captain using the compass’ feedback to hoist the sails and allow the boat to move at a higher speed. Do you utilize positive emotions to your benefit?
This program is designed to increase your level of emotional intelligence in four key areas … noticing and understanding your emotions, effective regulation of your emotions, using your emotions to facilitate performance, and noticing and understanding emotions in others. Please reach out to me if you are interested in learning more.