Strategies for Improving Emotional Intelligence, Essay Example

Human beings are indisputably emotional beings, even though women are deemed to be more emotional than men. However, it is of gravitas necessity that every individual should be able to control his or her emotions to avoid making regretful choices. As a result, embracing apt emotional intelligence is more of a requirement than a choice. In essence, emotional intelligence primarily refers to the ability to identify and manage your emotions and those of others (Collins, 2018). Therefore, the following are strategies for improving emotional intelligence.

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First and foremost, emotional intelligence is categorized into four skills. The skills are emotional memory, emotional learning ability, emotional sensitivity, and emotional processing. The four emotional skills are open to influential effects resulting from emotional lessons during an individual's childhood stage as instructed by family members, teachers, and parents. As a result, the emotional lessons that a person is taken through during his or her childhood life is the epicenter of his or her emotional intelligence. Thus, any strategy whose focal point is to improve emotional intelligence ought to incorporate the four skills of emotional intelligence.

Moreover, emotional sensitivity as one of the critical skills of emotional intelligence is one area that has posted a relatively high challenge to most people. According to Soltani, Jafari, and Abedi, (2017), emotional sensitivity is mostly healthy even though at a certain level, it might end up presenting detrimental effects. As a result, to improve the harmful effects of emotional sensitivity, below are the strategies to adopt.

Taking Self-Assessment

If you lack certainty over your emotional sensitivity, self-assessment will be of help to you. A more straightforward way is through the use of a questionnaire. The answers to the questionnaire will provide you with a relatively accurate reflection of your experiences and emotions. Ensure you respond to the questions honestly and don't judge yourself. In the end, therefore, the moment you have been able to establish the scope of your emotional sensitivity, pay critical attention at managing your emotions in a more apt manner (Rankin, n.d.).

Use Journaling in the Exploration of Your Emotions

Ensure that you keep a journal of your emotions. The emotions journal will significantly help you to keep a keen track and to explore your emotions as well as your responses. The journal of your emotions will, therefore, help you to easily recognize that which may trigger you into the over-emotional response (Muntau, 2017). Also, it will enable you to be able to tell when your responses are apt (McCullough, 2017). More so, make sure that you practice self-compassion by not passing judgment on yourself as a result of your feelings.

Desist From Labeling Yourself

There is a common tendency for individuals with sensitive emotions to be framed with demeaning names such as "cry baby" or to be openly insulted. In some instances, the insults are pushed further to an extent they develop into descriptive titles. In response, it is fundamental to challenge the negative response through reframing. Thus, you will have to accept the label, then seek ways to remove it and have a broader perception of the situation in context.

Identification of Your Emotional Sensitivity Triggers

There is a high possibility you are either aware of your oversensitive emotions or not aware. More so, your brain is capable of developing a particular pattern that causes automatic creativity the moment you come into contact with certain stimuli. An example of stimuli that is known for producing oversensitive emotional responses is stressful experiences. If not controlled, the pattern will eventually develop into a habit. Providentially, it is very much possible for an individual to learn how to retrain their brain as well as shaping new patterns. Therefore, the next time, you are submerged into emotional experiences such as anxiety, panic, or anger, always focus your attention to your sensory experiences (Collins, 2018).

Take Time to Feel Your Emotions

Attempting to overcome your emotions, oversensitivity does not necessarily imply that you have to desist from feeling your emotions (Soltani, Jafari, & Abedi, 2017). Surprisingly, excessive suppressing and denial of your emotions present harmful repercussions. Thus, always be keen to acknowledge emotions that are unpleasant such as fear, anger, grief, and hurt. On the other hand, also acknowledge positive emotions such as delight and joy. Make sure you, therefore, give yourself space to express and balance your emotions (McCullough, 2017).

In winding up, improvement of emotional intelligence is a significant initiative in human personality development. However, improvement initiatives ought to be inclined with the emotional skill that is affected. Therefore, improvement of emotional intelligence from an emotional sensitivity perspective ought to look into the above five mentioned emotional intelligence enhancements strategies.

References

Collins, W. (2018). Emotional Intelligence: Practical Guide to Improve Your EQ and Achieve Success. Williams Collins.

McCullough, N. (2017). Emotional Intelligence: The Top Secret to Using Emotional Intelligence to Get the Most Out of Your Life. Tenzy Publisher.

Muntau, G. (2017). Emotional Intelligence: Master the Strategies to Improve Your Emotional Intelligence, Build Self-confidence, and Find Long-Lasting Success. Scotts Valley, CA: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform.

Rankin, B. (n.d.). Emotional intelligence and being a successful learner and teacher. Emotional Intelligence in Health and Social Care, 115-125. doi:10.4324/9780429471094-9

Soltani, L., Jafari, E. M., & Abedi, M. R. (2017). Improving Emotional Intelligence in Children: Early Childhood Emotional Curriculum. Journal of Education and Human Development, 6(3). doi:10.15640/jehd.v6n3a16