EI, Not IQ, Is The Key to Outstanding Leadership Performance

Written by Manya Arond-Thomas


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Withrepparttar complexity of problems facing health care leaders, collaboration andrepparttar 104949 ability to synthesize divergent points of view are needed more than ever if we are to solve these problems. Because most work in organizations today is done by teams, there is a pressing need to make teams work together better.

Research has demonstratedrepparttar 104950 superiority of group decision-making over that of evenrepparttar 104951 brightest individual inrepparttar 104952 group, except whenrepparttar 104953 group lacks harmony orrepparttar 104954 ability to cooperate. Then decision-making quality and speed suffer. When people feel good, they work more effectively, and are more creative. Common sense tells us that workers who feel upbeat will gorepparttar 104955 extra mile to please customers and therefore improverepparttar 104956 bottom line.

To be most effective,repparttar 104957 team needs to create emotionally intelligent norms that support behaviors for building trust, group identity and group efficacy - three conditions essential to a team’s effectiveness. Norms that foster group EI involve: courageously bringing feelings out inrepparttar 104958 open and dialoguing about how they affectrepparttar 104959 team’s work, using humor to defuse tense situations,repparttar 104960 willingness to explore and expose unhealthy work habits in order to build more effective group norms and performance, and behaving in ways that build relationships both inside and outsiderepparttar 104961 team. In self-aware, self-managing teams, members hold each other accountable for sticking to norms.

However, it isrepparttar 104962 leader’s job to instill a sense of responsibility in each person forrepparttar 104963 well-being ofrepparttar 104964 team. It takes a strong emotionally intelligent leader to holdrepparttar 104965 team to such responsibility. An emotionally competent leader who is skilled in creating good feelings can keep cooperation high. Good team leaders know how to balancerepparttar 104966 focus on productivity with attention to members’ relationships and their ability to connect.

How Do You Build an Emotionally Intelligent Organization?

In addition to specific emotional competencies, there are certain Rules of Engagement that help to create a resonant, emotionally intelligent, and effective culture: 1. Discoverrepparttar 104967 emotional reality ofrepparttar 104968 organization.

2. Slow down in order to speed up – talk to people at all levels and find out about systems and culture.

3. Start atrepparttar 104969 top with a bottom-up strategy, engaging all repparttar 104970 representative stakeholders who in any way impactrepparttar 104971 patient-customer interface, and learn about what’s working and what’s not working. Then create a whole-system conversation in which allrepparttar 104972 stakeholders who need to be in repparttar 104973 conversation are inrepparttar 104974 room and talk about what needs to happen to move things forward.

4. Create a preferred future, with an energizing vision to which employees can bring their best selves.

5. Sustain emotional intelligence by turningrepparttar 104975 vision into action, creating systems or processes that promote emotionally intelligent behavior.

Matters of emotion are typically dismissed asrepparttar 104976 “soft” stuff, yet in reality emotional competence isrepparttar 104977 “hard” stuff. Developing EI is well worthrepparttar 104978 effort, for emotional competence is what setsrepparttar 104979 best leaders andrepparttar 104980 best teams apart fromrepparttar 104981 rest.

(c) Copyright 2003 Manya Arond-Thomas All Rights Reserved.

Manya Arond-Thomas, M.D., a principal of Encompass Health, coaches physicians, healthcare executives, and teams aspiring to build competence in the skills required to lead organizations in turbulent times. Contact her at (734) 480-1932 or Manya@EncompassHealth.com. Subscribe to Emotional Intelligence at Work mailto:manya_list@aweber.com


How Effectively Do You Influence?

Written by Manya Arond-Thomas


Continued from page 1

Note that there are four common ways that people can and do influence without integrity. These include: avoiding, manipulating, threatening, and intimidating.

We have personality style preferences for how we perceive and process information that predispose us both to use certain influence strategies naturally and to be more receptive to some than to others. However, each influence tactic requires a unique set of skills, which can be learned if you don’t come by them naturally. In choosing a tactic, you need to know whatrepparttar situation requires as well as how and to what your listener responds. For example, does your listener make decisions based on logic or based on people-centered values? Do they value affiliation and a participatory approach or do they respond more to legitimate authority?

Influence skills include a number of verbal skills such as asserting, probing, persisting, speaking conversationally, and willingness to ask for favors. Yet, equally important are non-verbal skills such as conveying energy and enthusiasm, using a compelling tone of voice, using authority without appearing heavy-handed, sensitivity to others’ feelings and needs, and building rapport and trust.

As a leader, it behooves you to have an accurate assessment of your influence effectiveness. You can do this best through a formal 360-degree assessment or short of that, ask your colleagues and friends for feedback, both positive and constructive, on how they perceive your influence skills.

(c) Copyright 2003. Manya Arond-Thomas, all rights reserved.

Manya Arond-Thomas, M.D., is the founder of Manya Arond-Thomas & Company, a coaching and consulting firm that catalyzes the creation of “right results” through facilitating executive development, high-performance teams and organizational effectiveness. She can be reached at (734) 480-1932 or e-mailed at manya@arond-thomas.com Subscribe to Emotional Intelligence at Work mailto:manya_list@aweber.com


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