Emotional Intelligence in Business Communication
Emotional Intelligence in Business Communication
Understanding the emotions involved during communication and how to use them effectively in business can be a very difficult task, one we face every day. The words we use can and do have a measurable effect on the persons with whom we communicate. Effective communication requires an emotional as well as social intelligence; we need to understand the emotional and social state of the people we speak to in order to maintain relationships.
Do we change the way we speak when we notice our significant other is upset? How do we communicate in the business world when our superior is upset? Will an understanding of the emotional state of our employees make a positive impact on productivity? Having a thorough knowledge of the emotional and social queues we receive from others is paramount to answering these questions effectively.
Emotional intelligence is a concept that hit the mainstream in the 1990s. The main idea of emotional intelligence includes being able to identify your own emotions and regulating those emotions in order to manage relationships (Todd, E.,2009). Understanding how to properly engage people and their emotions is important in the delivery of business communication. If the emotion is not in sync with your words, the message will come across incorrect or misunderstood. The misunderstanding or miscommunication of emotional queues can have an immediate and negative impact on the business environment.
As Daniel Goleman writes in Social Intelligence, The New Science of Relationships:
“When someone dumps their toxic feelings on us—explodes in anger or threats, shows disgust or contempt—they activate in us circuitry for those very same distressing emotions. Their act has potent neurological consequences: emotions are contagious. We “catch” strong emotions much as we do a rhinovirus—and so can come down with the emotional equivalent of a cold (Goleman, 27).”
What is important to
Understanding the emotions involved during communication and how to use them effectively in business can be a very difficult task, one we face every day. The words we use can and do have a measurable effect on the persons with whom we communicate. Effective communication requires an emotional as well as social intelligence; we need to understand the emotional and social state of the people we speak to in order to maintain relationships.
Do we change the way we speak when we notice our significant other is upset? How do we communicate in the business world when our superior is upset? Will an understanding of the emotional state of our employees make a positive impact on productivity? Having a thorough knowledge of the emotional and social queues we receive from others is paramount to answering these questions effectively.
Emotional intelligence is a concept that hit the mainstream in the 1990s. The main idea of emotional intelligence includes being able to identify your own emotions and regulating those emotions in order to manage relationships (Todd, E.,2009). Understanding how to properly engage people and their emotions is important in the delivery of business communication. If the emotion is not in sync with your words, the message will come across incorrect or misunderstood. The misunderstanding or miscommunication of emotional queues can have an immediate and negative impact on the business environment.
As Daniel Goleman writes in Social Intelligence, The New Science of Relationships:
“When someone dumps their toxic feelings on us—explodes in anger or threats, shows disgust or contempt—they activate in us circuitry for those very same distressing emotions. Their act has potent neurological consequences: emotions are contagious. We “catch” strong emotions much as we do a rhinovirus—and so can come down with the emotional equivalent of a cold (Goleman, 27).”
What is important to
Cited: Goleman, Daniel. Social intelligence: The new science of human relationships. New York: Bantam Books, 2006. DeVito, Joseph A. Interpersonal messages: Communication and relationship skills. Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 2011. Todd, Elizabeth. "Emotional Intelligence and Interpersonal Communication in Relationships, Family and Business." Yahoo! Contributor Network. 11 Dec. 2009. 04 Apr. 2013 <http://voices.yahoo.com/emotional-intelligence-interpersonal-communication-5055606.html?cat=7.