As we discussed the last 2 weeks, Patrick Lencioni believes that ideal team players are humble, hungry, and smart.
What does he mean by smart? In the context of a team, smart refers to your common sense about people: being interpersonally appropriate and aware. “Smart people tend to know what is happening in a group situation and how to deal with others in the most effective way.”
To me, this is emotional intelligence: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness and social management. It was you, or the friend in high school who got along with everyone in the class. They just seemed to know how to get everyone working together on the school dance, or calmed down the drama and got friends to talk to each other again after a spat. Many times they were not the top student in the class. Yet years later, they are very successful at business. Hm, yes, they were smart. We just didn’t understand how important this was in organizations.
The good news is that you can get more emotionally intelligent. It is a skill that can be learned. It is also a skill that can be evaluated and selected for in interviews and discussed with the team.
Here are 3 statements to review. Do you do these: 3-usually, 2-sometimes or 1-rarely.
I generally understand what others are feeling during meetings and conversations.
I am an attentive listener.
I am aware of how my words and actions impact others on the team.
The real value in assessing yourself is to pick an area where you can do better and then focus on making improvement.
90% of top performers exhibit high EQ according to Dr. Travis Bradberry. His book Emotional Intelligence 2.0 is a great source for targeted exercises in EQ. If you want specific exercises to help you get smarter, start here.
What can you work on this week to be smarter?
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